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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. tube — a container
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. kid — child
  7. suit — in cards
  8. tear — from crying
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. march — the month
  12. march — the month
  13. plane — a tool
  14. tear — to rip
  15. tear — from crying
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. march — music
  19. suit — to fit
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. suit — clothes
  22. kid — to tease
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. tube — the underground

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