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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. present — there
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. present — a gift
  7. object — a thing
  8. fine — high quality
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. object — an aim
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. last — to go on
  14. shower — to wash
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. object — to protest
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. fine — all right
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. last — finally
  21. shower — rain
  22. bat — the animal
  23. mine — for digging
  24. last — final

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