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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. race — a contest
  3. lean — to bend
  4. lean — thin
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. row — to paddle
  8. race — the arms race
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. race — humankind
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. row — a line
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. lean — to rest against

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