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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. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. sharp — clever
  6. can — a tin
  7. can — a tin
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. toast — bread
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. tear — from crying
  14. band — a ring
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. tear — from crying
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. band — a music group
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. tear — to rip
  24. can — to be able to

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