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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. row — to paddle
  4. race — humankind
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. row — a line
  7. wind — moving air
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. game — a match
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. can — a tin
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. wind — moving air
  16. race — the arms race
  17. perch — the fish
  18. file — a line of people
  19. file — a tool
  20. game — wild animals
  21. can — a tin
  22. file — a document
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. race — a contest

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