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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. kid — child
  3. fall — the season
  4. chest — of your body
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. land — ground
  8. fall — to drop
  9. chest — a box
  10. board — a committee
  11. land — to come down
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. land — a country
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. rock — music
  16. spell — magic
  17. rock — a stone
  18. fall — to drop
  19. spell — letters
  20. board — to get on
  21. chest — of your body
  22. kid — to tease
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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