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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. squash — the sport
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. cold — an illness
  7. bulb — for light
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. pass — a permit
  13. cold — not warm
  14. bat — the animal
  15. bulb — for light
  16. capital — money
  17. capital — a city
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. squash — to crush
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. cold — the Cold War

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