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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. field — a subject
  5. pound — a weight
  6. bass — low music
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. saw — the tool
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. mark — a trace
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. mine — for digging
  18. field — farmland
  19. saw — the tool
  20. mark — a grade
  21. plane — a tool
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. field — for sport
  24. bass — the fish

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