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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. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. court — of law
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. bark — to shout
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cold — an illness
  10. squash — to crush
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. date — the fruit
  16. wind — moving air
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. wind — moving air
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. court — of a king
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. squash — the sport
  24. court — for sport

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