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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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. game — a match
  3. saw — the tool
  4. game — wild animals
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. kid — to tease
  7. track — a path
  8. mate — a partner
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. kid — child
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. saw — the tool
  18. wax — to grow
  19. track — a song
  20. mate — to breed
  21. mate — a friend
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. track — to keep track

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