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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. last — to go on
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. mate — a partner
  5. perch — the fish
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — moving air
  9. board — to get on
  10. last — final
  11. board — a committee
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. mate — to breed
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. last — finally
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. perch — for a bird

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