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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. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. band — a music group
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. last — to go on
  9. last — finally
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. scale — size or range
  12. march — the month
  13. band — a ring
  14. scale — in music
  15. lie — to recline
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. mine — for digging
  18. last — final
  19. march — the month
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. march — music
  23. snap — to click
  24. mine — belonging to me

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