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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. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. prune — to trim
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. clip — to cut
  5. net — after costs
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. tube — the underground
  9. net — in sport
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. mate — a partner
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. clip — for paper
  15. bark — to shout
  16. mate — a friend
  17. net — for catching
  18. prune — to trim
  19. tube — a container
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. mate — to breed
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. clip — a video

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