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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 sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. capital — money
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. clip — a video
  6. chair — a leader
  7. capital — a city
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. kid — to tease
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. pass — a permit
  12. clip — to cut
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. bore — to tire
  15. kid — child
  16. clip — for paper
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. bore — to drill
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. chair — a professorship

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