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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. saw — the tool
  6. swing — music
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. prune — to trim
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. prune — to trim
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. swing — in golf
  17. bat — the animal
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. swing — to play on
  24. hide — animal skin

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com