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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 sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. kid — to tease
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. track — to keep track
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. content — happy
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. drill — army training
  9. track — a path
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. kid — child
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. drill — the tool
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. track — a song
  20. pass — a permit
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. content — the amount
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. drill — a practice

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