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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 little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. capital — a city
  6. press — to push
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. press — newspapers
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. bear — the animal
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. capital — money
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. press — a publisher
  18. content — the amount
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. game — a match
  22. content — happy
  23. game — wild animals
  24. bay — a horse colour

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