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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 116 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 had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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. kid — child
  3. prune — to trim
  4. hand — in cards
  5. prune — to trim
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. saw — the tool
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. plane — a tool
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. hand — help
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. kid — to tease
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. saw — the tool
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. lean — to bend
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. lean — thin
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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