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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 120 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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. mate — to breed
  3. board — to get on
  4. mate — a friend
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. ball — a dance
  7. wind — moving air
  8. board — a committee
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. rock — music
  11. kid — child
  12. rock — a stone
  13. file — a line of people
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. ball — a great time
  17. file — a document
  18. file — a tool
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. wind — moving air
  21. mate — a partner
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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