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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. shower — to wash
  5. bound — tied together
  6. prune — to trim
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. last — finally
  9. last — to go on
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. bound — obliged
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. bound — certain
  17. last — final
  18. prune — to trim
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. shower — rain
  24. coach — a trainer

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