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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. wind — moving air
  3. pop — to visit
  4. file — a document
  5. file — a tool
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. sharp — clever
  9. file — a line of people
  10. stand — to bear
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. ball — a dance
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. pop — soda
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. mine — for digging
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. pop — music
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. ball — a great time
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. wind — moving air
  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