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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. drill — a practice
  5. game — wild animals
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. drill — the tool
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. drill — army training
  16. game — a match
  17. lean — to bend
  18. prune — to trim
  19. fall — the season
  20. fall — to drop
  21. prune — to trim
  22. lean — thin
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. fall — to drop

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