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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. last — finally
  5. squash — to crush
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. file — a document
  10. fall — to drop
  11. shower — to wash
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. last — to go on
  14. fall — to drop
  15. last — final
  16. squash — the sport
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. fall — the season
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. file — a line of people
  22. file — a tool
  23. shower — rain
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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