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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 120 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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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. lash — an eyelash
  3. pitch — completely
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. swing — to play on
  6. court — of a king
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. swing — in golf
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. clip — to cut
  12. clip — a video
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. court — for sport
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. court — of law
  17. clip — for paper
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. mate — to breed
  20. mate — a friend
  21. swing — music
  22. mate — a partner
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. racket — a loud noise

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