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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. face — to point toward
  12. face — part of the head
  13. clip — a video
  14. clip — to cut
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. shower — to wash
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. clip — for paper
  23. bark — to shout
  24. face — to confront

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