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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. chest — of your body
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. chest — of your body
  8. spell — magic
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. wake — a trail
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. suit — clothes
  14. foot — a measure
  15. spell — letters
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. chest — a box
  18. cold — an illness
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. suit — to fit
  21. suit — in cards
  22. spell — a short time
  23. cold — not warm
  24. foot — part of the body

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