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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 sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. cold — an illness
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. march — the month
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. cold — not warm
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. band — a ring
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. sharp — clever
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. band — a music group
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. lie — to recline
  23. march — the month
  24. march — music

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