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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. chest — a box
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. chest — of your body
  6. clip — a video
  7. mate — to breed
  8. chest — of your body
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. branch — a division
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. spell — letters
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. clip — to cut
  15. clip — for paper
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. mate — a friend
  18. spell — a short time
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. mate — a partner
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. spell — magic

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