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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. bear — the animal
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. land — ground
  6. tube — the underground
  7. club — for dancing
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. tube — a container
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. club — for golf
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. bear — the animal
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. land — a country
  18. plane — a tool
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. club — a group
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. land — to come down

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