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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bay · mate · spell · straw · tear · content

  1. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. mate — a friend
  4. mate — to breed
  5. tear — from crying
  6. mate — a partner
  7. tear — from crying
  8. spell — letters
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. content — the amount
  13. tear — to rip
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. content — happy
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. spell — magic
  18. spell — a short time

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