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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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. bowl — a football final
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. bore — to tire
  7. bore — to drill
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. last — to go on
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. mark — a trace
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. last — finally
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. last — final
  19. cold — not warm
  20. mark — a grade
  21. cold — an illness
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. dip — to sink

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