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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 120 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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. cap — a hat
  6. chest — of your body
  7. kick — in football
  8. rush — hurry
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. kid — child
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. chest — of your body
  14. wake — a trail
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. cap — of ice
  18. season — of the year
  19. chest — a box
  20. cap — a lid
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. kid — to tease
  24. season — in sport

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