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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: wound · hide · club · lean · bay · wake · race · rule

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. rule — government
  6. wound — an injury
  7. club — for dancing
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. rule — a law
  10. race — the arms race
  11. wound — an injury
  12. race — a contest
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. wake — a trail
  16. race — humankind
  17. lean — to bend
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. club — for golf
  20. club — a group
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. lean — thin
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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