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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. wound — an injury
  4. file — a tool
  5. track — a path
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. track — a song
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. net — in sport
  10. court — of law
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. court — for sport
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. roll — a cake
  15. file — a line of people
  16. net — after costs
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. wound — an injury
  19. net — for catching
  20. track — to keep track
  21. roll — a list
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. file — a document
  24. court — of a king

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