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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 120 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. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to spend time
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. file — a document
  4. cold — an illness
  5. pass — a permit
  6. spring — the season
  7. cold — not warm
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. season — in sport
  10. shower — rain
  11. spring — of water
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. shower — to wash
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. spring — a coil
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. perch — the fish
  19. file — a line of people
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. season — of the year
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. file — a tool

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