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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — the season
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. kick — in football
  8. club — for dancing
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. board — a committee
  13. chest — a box
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. club — for golf
  16. game — a match
  17. game — wild animals
  18. club — a group
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. spring — of water
  21. spring — the season
  22. chest — of your body
  23. spring — a coil
  24. board — to get on

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