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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 116 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: bear · cold · hand · hide · chip · ground · mate · nail

  1. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. cold — an illness
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. mate — a friend
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. chip — to eat
  8. chip — for betting
  9. ground — the earth
  10. cold — not warm
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. bear — the animal
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. hand — in cards
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. hand — help
  19. mate — to breed
  20. ground — crushed
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. ground — a position
  23. mate — a partner
  24. bear — the animal

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