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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. kid — child
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. saw — the tool
  9. present — there
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — moving air
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. hand — help
  15. saw — the tool
  16. game — a match
  17. present — a gift
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. game — wild animals
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. hand — in cards
  24. kid — to tease

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