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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. wind — moving air
  7. craft — boats
  8. field — a subject
  9. field — farmland
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. field — for sport
  14. wind — moving air
  15. snap — to click
  16. craft — a skill
  17. bore — to drill
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. last — final
  20. bore — to tire
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. last — finally
  23. last — to go on
  24. trunk — of a tree

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