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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 116 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. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. hand — help
  6. tear — to rip
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. game — wild animals
  10. pit — a hole
  11. branch — a division
  12. cell — a phone
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. tear — from crying
  15. current — of water
  16. tear — from crying
  17. current — electric
  18. current — happening now
  19. pit — in a race
  20. hand — in cards
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. cell — in biology
  23. game — a match
  24. branch — of a tree

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