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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: lash · ball · clip · roll · hide · present · march · bear

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. march — the month
  4. clip — to cut
  5. roll — a cake
  6. ball — a great time
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. present — there
  10. bear — the animal
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. bear — the animal
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. march — the month
  18. march — music
  19. present — a gift
  20. present — the time now
  21. clip — for paper
  22. clip — a video
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. ball — a dance

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