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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. charge — a price
  3. chest — a box
  4. wind — moving air
  5. charge — electricity
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. wind — moving air
  8. cold — an illness
  9. charge — in control
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. chest — of your body
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. foot — a measure
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. chest — of your body
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. pit — in a race
  24. pit — a hole

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