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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. stock — shares
  3. tear — to rip
  4. bank — of a river
  5. spring — the season
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. game — wild animals
  9. spring — of water
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. saw — the tool
  13. stock — goods
  14. tear — from crying
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. saw — the tool
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. tear — from crying
  21. spring — a coil
  22. game — a match
  23. bank — for money
  24. bank — for money

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