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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: can · tube · sharp · bear · swing · ball · cold · bay

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. can — to be able to
  3. sharp — clever
  4. cold — an illness
  5. ball — a great time
  6. can — a tin
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. can — a tin
  10. swing — music
  11. cold — not warm
  12. ball — a dance
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. swing — in golf
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. swing — to play on
  17. tube — the underground
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. tube — a container
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. bear — the animal
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. bear — to put up with

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