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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: cold · wave · mouse · court · pop · bay · date · bark

  1. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. cold — an illness
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. court — of a king
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. cold — not warm
  10. pop — to visit
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. date — the fruit
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. court — of law
  21. pop — soda
  22. pop — music
  23. bark — to shout
  24. court — for sport

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