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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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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: bay · shower · pitch · bark · season · ruler · straw · track

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. track — to keep track
  3. pitch — completely
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. track — a path
  6. shower — rain
  7. season — in sport
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. bark — to shout
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. track — a song
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. season — of the year
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. shower — to wash
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. straw — a straw man

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