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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: wind · straw · track · mate · craft · game · dip · bay

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. track — a path
  3. game — a match
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. game — wild animals
  6. mate — a partner
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. track — to keep track
  9. track — a song
  10. mate — a friend
  11. craft — boats
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. dip — to sink
  16. mate — to breed
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. wind — moving air
  24. craft — a skill

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