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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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Word bank
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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: wind · mate · cell · bay · nail · straw

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. wind — moving air
  6. mate — a friend
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. cell — in biology
  9. mate — to breed
  10. wind — moving air
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. mate — a partner
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. wind — to turn a key

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