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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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. bay — a horse colour
  3. field — a subject
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. kid — to tease
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. squash — to crush
  8. spell — magic
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. kid — child
  11. squash — the sport
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. field — farmland
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. ball — a great time
  17. spell — a short time
  18. chip — to eat
  19. field — for sport
  20. plane — a tool
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. ball — a dance
  23. spell — letters
  24. chip — for betting

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