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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. degree — from a university
  3. wind — moving air
  4. court — for sport
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. current — of water
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bore — to tire
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. court — of law
  14. row — to paddle
  15. bore — to drill
  16. court — of a king
  17. current — happening now
  18. degree — temperature
  19. current — electric
  20. row — a line
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. pit — in a race
  23. degree — an amount
  24. pit — a hole

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