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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wind — moving air
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. mate — to breed
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. spell — magic
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. mate — a partner
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. mate — a friend
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. dip — to sink
  16. spell — a short time
  17. ground — crushed
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bulb — for light
  20. ground — a position
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. ground — the earth
  23. wind — moving air
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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