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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. press — to push
  5. chest — of your body
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. sharp — clever
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. chest — of your body
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. chest — a box
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. press — newspapers
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. press — a publisher

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