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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: straw · cold · bay · dip · racket · pitch · jam · track

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. dip — to sink
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. track — a path
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. pitch — completely
  15. cold — an illness
  16. cold — not warm
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. track — to keep track
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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