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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 ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. spring — the season
  5. field — for sport
  6. lean — to bend
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. dip — to sink
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. field — farmland
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. spring — of water
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. lie — to recline
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — moving air
  20. prune — to trim
  21. lean — thin
  22. prune — to trim
  23. spring — a coil
  24. field — a subject

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