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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. pound — a weight
  3. swing — to play on
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. net — in sport
  6. last — finally
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. last — final
  9. net — for catching
  10. swing — music
  11. current — electric
  12. squash — to crush
  13. current — happening now
  14. squash — the sport
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. cell — a phone
  17. last — to go on
  18. net — after costs
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. swing — in golf
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. current — of water
  24. cell — in biology

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