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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. pop — soda
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. prune — to trim
  6. fine — all right
  7. track — to keep track
  8. prune — to trim
  9. ball — a great time
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. pop — music
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. ball — a dance
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. wound — an injury
  18. track — a song
  19. pop — to visit
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. track — a path
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. wound — an injury
  24. prune — the fruit

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