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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. row — a line
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. court — of a king
  5. cap — a hat
  6. present — the time now
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. court — for sport
  9. mate — a partner
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. cap — of ice
  12. spring — a coil
  13. bat — the animal
  14. present — a gift
  15. spring — of water
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. present — there
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. row — to paddle
  20. spring — the season
  21. court — of law
  22. cap — a lid
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mate — a friend

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