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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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. squash — the sport
  3. tear — to rip
  4. squash — to crush
  5. bass — low music
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. net — in sport
  8. net — for catching
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. toast — bread
  11. tear — from crying
  12. ground — the earth
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. ground — a position
  16. bass — the fish
  17. ground — crushed
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. bark — to shout
  22. net — after costs
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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