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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. wind — moving air
  4. chair — a leader
  5. ground — crushed
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. ground — a position
  9. track — a song
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. track — a path
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. roll — a list
  14. ground — the earth
  15. track — to keep track
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. saw — the tool
  22. saw — the tool
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. roll — a cake

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