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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. bat — the animal
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. land — ground
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. snap — to click
  17. land — to come down
  18. land — a country

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