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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: present · board · prune · wake · cold · fine · hide · court

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. court — of a king
  4. cold — not warm
  5. fine — all right
  6. board — to get on
  7. fine — high quality
  8. court — of law
  9. present — a gift
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cold — an illness
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. present — the time now
  16. board — a committee
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. court — for sport
  19. present — there
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. prune — to trim
  22. wake — a trail
  23. prune — to trim
  24. wake — before a funeral

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