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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. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. cold — an illness
  6. fork — in a road
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. cold — not warm
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. shower — to wash
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. clip — a video
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. fine — all right
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. fine — high quality
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. clip — for paper
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. clip — to cut
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. shower — rain
  24. bat — the animal

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