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

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. last — finally
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. can — a tin
  7. hand — in cards
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. can — a tin
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. hand — help
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. last — final
  16. last — to go on
  17. snap — to click
  18. can — to be able to

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