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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 120 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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Word bank
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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. clip — for paper
  3. pit — in a race
  4. clip — a video
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. pit — a hole
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bass — low music
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bass — the fish
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. clip — to cut
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. bear — the animal
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. bark — to shout
  23. cold — not warm
  24. lash — an eyelash

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