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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. spring — a coil
  4. staff — employees
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. charge — electricity
  8. last — to go on
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. spring — of water
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. last — finally
  13. staff — a stick
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. spring — the season
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. charge — a price
  20. staff — employees
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. last — final
  24. charge — in control

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