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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: mouse · last · cap · bowl · pop · kick · tear · hide

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. tear — to rip
  3. pop — soda
  4. cap — of ice
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. pop — music
  10. kick — in football
  11. last — to go on
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. last — finally
  17. pop — to visit
  18. tear — from crying
  19. cap — a lid
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. last — final
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. cap — a hat
  24. tear — from crying

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