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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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. wind — to turn a key
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. cold — not warm
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. race — a contest
  11. race — the arms race
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. mine — for digging
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. wind — moving air
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. cold — an illness
  20. saw — the tool
  21. race — humankind
  22. saw — the tool
  23. wind — moving air
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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