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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: wake · pound · hide · court · rash · cold · bear · toast

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. cold — not warm
  5. court — of a king
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. rash — hasty
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. wake — a trail
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — the animal
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. court — of law
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. pound — a weight
  20. cold — an illness
  21. toast — bread
  22. rash — a series
  23. court — for sport
  24. bear — to put up with

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