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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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. game — a kind of play
  3. current — electric
  4. game — wild animals
  5. staff — employees
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. tear — from crying
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. staff — a stick
  10. pit — in a race
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. clip — for paper
  13. staff — employees
  14. clip — to cut
  15. current — of water
  16. clip — a video
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. game — a match
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — to rip
  21. current — happening now
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. pit — a hole
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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