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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: kid · hide · staff · fan · pit · lie · mate · file

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. lie — to recline
  6. mate — a friend
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. mate — to breed
  9. pit — a hole
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. file — a document
  14. mate — a partner
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. file — a line of people
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. kid — child
  19. kid — to tease
  20. pit — in a race
  21. staff — employees
  22. file — a tool
  23. staff — employees
  24. staff — a stick

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