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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. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. bear — the animal
  5. swing — in golf
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. degree — from a university
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. degree — temperature
  11. swing — to play on
  12. degree — an amount
  13. tube — the underground
  14. foot — a measure
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bear — the animal
  17. shower — to wash
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. tube — a container
  20. bark — to shout
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. shower — rain
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. swing — music

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