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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  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. bay — a horse colour
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. wind — moving air
  4. rest — what's left
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. mate — a partner
  7. prune — to trim
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. rest — a break
  10. cap — of ice
  11. scale — in music
  12. wind — moving air
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. mate — to breed
  15. kid — child
  16. kid — to tease
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. cap — a lid
  19. prune — to trim
  20. cap — a hat
  21. mate — a friend
  22. rest — what's left
  23. scale — size or range
  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