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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. game — a match
  3. bark — to shout
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. content — happy
  7. last — final
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. content — the amount
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. last — finally
  16. mark — a trace
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. game — wild animals
  20. mark — a grade
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. last — to go on
  24. chair — a leader

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