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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — for paper
  5. net — in sport
  6. roll — a list
  7. net — after costs
  8. hand — in cards
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. clip — a video
  12. roll — a cake
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. shower — rain
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. hand — help
  18. rush — hurry
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. net — for catching
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. shower — to wash

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