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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. club — for dancing
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. track — to keep track
  5. fall — to drop
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. club — a group
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. game — wild animals
  11. game — a match
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. cell — a phone
  15. wake — a trail
  16. wind — moving air
  17. track — a song
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. fall — to drop
  21. track — a path
  22. fall — the season
  23. club — for golf
  24. cell — in biology

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