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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. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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. root — of a plant
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. clip — for paper
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. game — a match
  8. game — wild animals
  9. clip — to cut
  10. rash — a series
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. clip — a video
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. vault — a safe
  15. root — the cause
  16. stock — goods
  17. root — of a word
  18. shower — rain
  19. shower — to wash
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. rash — hasty
  22. stock — shares
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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