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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. pass — a permit
  3. staff — employees
  4. net — for catching
  5. drill — a practice
  6. net — in sport
  7. staff — employees
  8. hand — help
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. drill — the tool
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. staff — a stick
  13. hand — in cards
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. net — after costs
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. drill — army training
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. straw — a straw man

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