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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. firm — steady
  3. spell — a short time
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. bass — low music
  7. stock — shares
  8. spell — letters
  9. stock — goods
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bass — the fish
  12. firm — a company
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. swing — music
  15. firm — decided
  16. file — a document
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. swing — to play on
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. file — a tool
  22. spell — magic
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. file — a line of people

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