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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. chest — of your body
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. pop — to visit
  8. cold — an illness
  9. season — of the year
  10. tear — to rip
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. pop — soda
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chest — a box
  17. pop — music
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. tear — from crying
  20. fork — in a road
  21. tear — from crying
  22. cold — not warm
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. fork — to eat with

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