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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 120 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: hand · pit · bay · face · stand · fork · spring · mouse

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. spring — a coil
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. fork — in a road
  8. hand — in cards
  9. face — to confront
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. face — to point toward
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. face — part of the head
  14. pit — in a race
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. spring — of water
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. hand — help
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. spring — the season
  22. pit — a hole
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. stand — to bear

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