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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. bass — low music
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. tube — a container
  6. rest — a break
  7. shower — rain
  8. wound — an injury
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. tube — the underground
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. rest — what's left
  16. shower — to wash
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. bark — to shout
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. rest — what's left
  23. bass — the fish
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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