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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. game — wild animals
  3. swing — to play on
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. chair — a leader
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. craft — a skill
  8. cap — a hat
  9. swing — in golf
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. tear — to rip
  12. cap — of ice
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — from crying
  16. dip — to sink
  17. swing — music
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. cap — a lid
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. game — a match
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. craft — boats
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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