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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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. tear — from crying
  3. spring — a coil
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. fine — all right
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. spring — of water
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. wake — a trail
  13. fork — in a road
  14. fine — high quality
  15. tear — from crying
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. row — to paddle
  19. row — a line
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. tear — to rip
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. spring — the season

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