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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. shower — rain
  5. degree — an amount
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. suit — to fit
  9. pitch — completely
  10. degree — from a university
  11. suit — in cards
  12. shower — to wash
  13. cell — in biology
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. suit — clothes
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. rest — what's left
  20. rest — what's left
  21. degree — temperature
  22. rest — a break
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. straw — a straw man

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