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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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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. rock — music
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. bound — obliged
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. rock — a stone
  12. row — to paddle
  13. field — for sport
  14. bound — certain
  15. bound — tied together
  16. field — a subject
  17. field — farmland
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. row — a line
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. racket — a loud noise

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