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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: date · race · bark · bay · wave · chest · squash · spring

  1. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. chest — of your body
  5. spring — a coil
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. date — the fruit
  8. bark — to shout
  9. squash — the sport
  10. race — the arms race
  11. squash — to crush
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. chest — a box
  17. chest — of your body
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. race — a contest
  20. spring — the season
  21. race — humankind
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. spring — of water
  24. squash — the vegetable

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