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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 124 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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. file — a tool
  3. chest — a box
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. wind — moving air
  9. game — wild animals
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. chest — of your body
  14. game — a match
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. pop — music
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. file — a document
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. pop — to visit
  23. file — a line of people
  24. arm — a part of something

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