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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 120 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: bay · straw · fall · hide · fork · rock · chest · stick

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. rock — a stone
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. chest — of your body
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. rock — music
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. chest — of your body
  12. fall — to drop
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. chest — a box
  15. fork — in a road
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. fall — the season
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. fall — to drop

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