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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. lean — to bend
  3. wound — an injury
  4. fall — the season
  5. chip — to eat
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. fall — to drop
  9. wound — an injury
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. lean — thin
  12. cue — a signal
  13. cue — for pool
  14. cue — a hint
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. chip — for betting
  21. fall — to drop
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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