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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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468
Word bank
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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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. band — a ring
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. cold — not warm
  5. cue — for pool
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. bear — the animal
  8. file — a tool
  9. cue — a signal
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. bear — the animal
  12. file — a line of people
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. perch — the fish
  18. cue — a hint
  19. band — a music group
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. file — a document
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. bear — to put up with

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