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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 120 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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. ball — a great time
  4. last — final
  5. last — to go on
  6. field — for sport
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. last — finally
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. mug — a cup
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. mug — to rob
  18. field — farmland
  19. wake — a trail
  20. field — a subject
  21. ball — a dance
  22. stock — shares
  23. stock — goods
  24. ball — a round shape

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