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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. capital — money
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. scale — size or range
  6. mug — a face
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. scale — in music
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. stem — to come from
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. mug — a cup
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. prune — to trim
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. mug — to rob
  22. capital — a city
  23. sharp — clever
  24. prune — to trim

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