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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  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. snap — to speak sharply
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. land — a country
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in biology
  7. perch — the fish
  8. march — the month
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. hand — in cards
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. snap — to click
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. march — the month
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. land — ground
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. land — to come down
  19. march — music
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. hand — help
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. perch — for a bird
  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