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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 124 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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. field — farmland
  4. drill — the tool
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. clip — a video
  7. field — a subject
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. drill — a practice
  10. net — after costs
  11. net — for catching
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. field — for sport
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. clip — to cut
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. clip — for paper
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. drill — army training
  24. net — in sport

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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