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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: last · kid · hide · saw · bark · date · leaves · bat

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bark — to shout
  5. kid — to tease
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. last — finally
  8. kid — child
  9. saw — the tool
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. last — final
  16. saw — the tool
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. date — the fruit
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. bat — in an idiom

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