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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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Word bank
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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 sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. spell — magic
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. bound — obliged
  5. pit — a hole
  6. spell — letters
  7. club — a group
  8. snap — to click
  9. kid — to tease
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. bound — tied together
  12. mine — for digging
  13. kid — child
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. bound — certain
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. spell — a short time
  20. club — for dancing
  21. pit — in a race
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. club — for golf
  24. mine — an explosive

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