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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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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: plane · bay · present · mine · wind · field · mouse · kid

  1. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. field — farmland
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. wind — moving air
  7. mine — for digging
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. present — the time now
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. plane — a tool
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. field — a subject
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. kid — to tease
  19. present — a gift
  20. kid — child
  21. present — there
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. field — for sport
  24. wind — moving air

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