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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: bay · key · row · hide · bulb · cap · clip · wind

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. wind — moving air
  3. key — for a lock
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. clip — a video
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. cap — a lid
  9. row — to paddle
  10. wind — moving air
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. key — in music
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. bulb — for light
  16. key — the most important part
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. cap — a hat
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. clip — for paper
  21. cap — of ice
  22. row — a line
  23. clip — to cut
  24. hide — to keep secret

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