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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. mug — to rob
  3. cell — a phone
  4. mark — a trace
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. cold — not warm
  7. wound — an injury
  8. sharp — clever
  9. cell — in biology
  10. prune — to trim
  11. cold — an illness
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. prune — to trim
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. mug — a face
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. mark — a grade
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. cell — in a prison

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