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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. drill — army training
  3. drill — the tool
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. game — wild animals
  6. rock — music
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. fall — to drop
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. rock — a stone
  11. fall — to drop
  12. bark — to shout
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. court — of law
  15. game — a match
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. fall — the season
  20. court — for sport
  21. court — of a king
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. drill — a practice
  24. bark — of a tree

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