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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. net — after costs
  3. wind — moving air
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. scale — in music
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. scale — size or range
  13. wind — moving air
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. net — for catching
  17. stand — to bear
  18. net — in sport

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