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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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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: cell · arm · stand · bear · pound · racket · hide · hand

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. hand — help
  8. cell — a phone
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. hand — in cards
  11. stand — to bear
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. pound — a weight
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. bear — the animal
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. bear — the animal
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. cell — in biology

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