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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. drill — a practice
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. bound — tied together
  7. shower — rain
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. drill — army training
  10. season — of the year
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. shower — to wash
  13. drill — the tool
  14. snap — to click
  15. bound — obliged
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. season — in sport
  18. bound — certain

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