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

Word bank: wake · bay · face · row · spell · fork · coach · present

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. face — part of the head
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. row — to paddle
  6. wake — a trail
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. face — to confront
  9. row — a line
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. fork — in a road
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. spell — a short time
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. present — the time now
  19. present — a gift
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. spell — magic
  22. face — to point toward
  23. spell — letters
  24. present — there

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