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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. mark — a trace
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. cold — an illness
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. net — after costs
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. mark — a grade
  9. net — in sport
  10. fork — in a road
  11. cold — not warm
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. net — for catching
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. ball — a dance

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