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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. file — a tool
  5. pit — a hole
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. wax — to grow
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. cue — a hint
  13. pit — in a race
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. file — a document
  17. file — a line of people
  18. cue — for pool
  19. hand — in cards
  20. cue — a signal
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. rush — hurry
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hand — help

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