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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.

Make a worksheet

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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. hand — help
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. file — a line of people
  5. row — to paddle
  6. file — a tool
  7. court — of a king
  8. hand — in cards
  9. court — for sport
  10. rash — hasty
  11. rash — a series
  12. game — a match
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. row — a line
  16. game — wild animals
  17. file — a document
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. court — of law
  24. bear — the animal

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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