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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. last — finally
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. sharp — clever
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. wound — an injury
  11. band — a music group
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. last — final
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. wound — an injury
  21. kick — in football
  22. last — to go on
  23. bark — to shout
  24. band — a ring

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