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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
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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: bear · hide · land · spell · patient · fork · bass · kid

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. spell — a short time
  4. spell — letters
  5. fork — in a road
  6. land — to come down
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. land — ground
  10. bass — the fish
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. kid — child
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. bear — the animal
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. kid — to tease
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. bass — low music
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. bear — the animal
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. spell — magic
  24. land — a country

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