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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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. rock — music
  3. snap — to click
  4. season — in sport
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. root — the cause
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. rock — a stone
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. root — of a plant
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. season — of the year
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bear — the animal
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. cell — in biology
  20. root — of a word
  21. cell — a phone
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. straw — a straw man

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