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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kid · march · hide · tube · lie · plane · stand · swing

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. swing — in golf
  5. march — the month
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. kid — to tease
  9. kid — child
  10. march — music
  11. plane — a tool
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. lie — to recline
  14. march — the month
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. swing — to play on
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. swing — music
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. tube — a container
  23. tube — the underground
  24. hide — to keep secret

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