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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. mark — a trace
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. content — happy
  7. content — the amount
  8. mark — a grade
  9. field — for sport
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. firm — steady
  13. field — a subject
  14. firm — decided
  15. firm — a company
  16. field — farmland
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. bay — to keep at bay

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