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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. mug — a face
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. spring — the season
  11. bark — to shout
  12. spring — a coil
  13. mug — a cup
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. game — wild animals
  17. pitch — completely
  18. game — a match
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. spring — of water
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. mug — to rob
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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