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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. scale — size or range
  3. drill — a practice
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. club — for dancing
  8. kick — in football
  9. cold — an illness
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. pop — to visit
  12. drill — army training
  13. branch — a division
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. club — a group
  16. scale — in music
  17. cold — not warm
  18. drill — the tool
  19. club — for golf
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. pop — music
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. pop — soda

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