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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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. rush — to hurry
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. season — of the year
  5. season — in sport
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. rush — hurry
  8. bound — tied together
  9. field — for sport
  10. board — a committee
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. wind — moving air
  13. last — final
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. last — finally
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. field — a subject
  19. bound — obliged
  20. wind — moving air
  21. field — farmland
  22. bound — certain
  23. last — to go on
  24. board — to get on

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