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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. clip — for paper
  6. kid — child
  7. bore — to tire
  8. root — the cause
  9. kid — to tease
  10. bore — to drill
  11. can — to be able to
  12. can — a tin
  13. cell — a phone
  14. root — of a word
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. clip — to cut
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. cell — in biology
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. clip — a video
  21. root — of a plant
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. bark — to shout
  24. can — a tin

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