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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 120 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: kid · land · race · club · straw · hide · bear · foot

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. kid — to tease
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. bear — the animal
  8. foot — a measure
  9. race — humankind
  10. kid — child
  11. bear — the animal
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. club — for dancing
  14. land — a country
  15. club — a group
  16. land — to come down
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. club — for golf
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. land — ground
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. race — the arms race

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