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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. last — final
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. chip — to eat
  5. swing — to play on
  6. game — a match
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. game — wild animals
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. lie — to recline
  12. swing — in golf
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. last — to go on
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. bulb — for light
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. bulb — for light
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. swing — music
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. chip — for betting
  24. last — finally

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