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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. cold — an illness
  3. drill — the tool
  4. spell — letters
  5. squash — the sport
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. ball — a great time
  9. squash — to crush
  10. cold — not warm
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. spell — a short time
  15. bear — the animal
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. drill — army training
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. drill — a practice
  20. spell — magic
  21. ball — a dance
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. chest — a box

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