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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 116 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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. rule — a law
  3. saw — the tool
  4. cue — a signal
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. saw — the tool
  7. cue — a hint
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. field — for sport
  13. bound — tied together
  14. cue — for pool
  15. bark — to shout
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — a contest
  18. bound — obliged
  19. field — a subject
  20. rule — government
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. race — humankind
  23. bound — certain
  24. field — farmland

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