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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.

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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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. rock — music
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. clip — a video
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. fine — all right
  7. spell — a short time
  8. clip — to cut
  9. ground — a position
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. ground — the earth
  13. rock — a stone
  14. plane — a tool
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. spell — letters
  17. clip — for paper
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. ground — crushed
  20. spell — magic
  21. fine — high quality
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. fine — a penalty

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