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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. chest — a box
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. staff — employees
  7. chest — of your body
  8. fork — in a road
  9. bass — the fish
  10. last — final
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. rash — a series
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. bass — low music
  15. last — to go on
  16. staff — employees
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. staff — a stick
  20. rash — hasty
  21. last — finally
  22. chest — of your body
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. bass — the instrument

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