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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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. bay — to keep at bay
  3. bark — to shout
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. rule — a law
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. club — for golf
  8. press — newspapers
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. cold — an illness
  11. club — for dancing
  12. chest — of your body
  13. press — to push
  14. chest — of your body
  15. cold — not warm
  16. rule — government
  17. perch — the fish
  18. club — a group
  19. chest — a box
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. press — a publisher

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