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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: rest · hide · object · mouse · lean · court · game · cold

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. rest — a break
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. lean — thin
  7. cold — not warm
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — what's left
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. court — for sport
  13. game — a match
  14. object — an aim
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. cold — an illness
  17. object — to protest
  18. court — of a king
  19. game — wild animals
  20. object — a thing
  21. court — of law
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. lean — to bend

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