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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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. shower — to wash
  3. bore — to tire
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. bore — to drill
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. march — music
  12. shower — rain
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. chest — of your body
  15. march — the month
  16. mine — for digging
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. march — the month
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. chest — a box
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. chest — of your body
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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