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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 116 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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. prune — to trim
  3. race — humankind
  4. race — a contest
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. drill — army training
  7. cue — a signal
  8. drill — a practice
  9. fork — in a road
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. cue — a hint
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. drill — the tool
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. cue — for pool
  17. race — the arms race
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. racket — a loud noise
  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