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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. tube — the underground
  6. tear — from crying
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. tear — from crying
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. file — a line of people
  12. lean — thin
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. lean — to bend
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. file — a tool
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. rock — music
  20. file — a document
  21. rock — a stone
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tear — to rip
  24. calf — a young animal

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