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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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. shower — to wash
  3. kid — to tease
  4. shower — rain
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. kid — child
  8. file — a document
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. vault — a safe
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. file — a tool
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. pound — a weight
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. chair — a leader
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. file — a line of people
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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