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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.

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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. content — happy
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. kid — to tease
  5. bear — the animal
  6. kid — child
  7. march — the month
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. march — the month
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. net — in sport
  14. march — music
  15. cue — a signal
  16. shower — rain
  17. content — the amount
  18. cue — for pool
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. shower — to wash
  21. bear — the animal
  22. cue — a hint
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. net — after costs

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