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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: hide · cold · present · board · tear · date · lie · rash

  1. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. tear — to rip
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. rash — hasty
  5. tear — from crying
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. board — a committee
  9. rash — a series
  10. tear — from crying
  11. present — the time now
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. cold — an illness
  14. lie — to recline
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. cold — not warm
  19. date — the fruit
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. present — a gift
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. present — there
  24. hide — to keep secret

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