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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bat · bark · fan · saw · mine · bear · bay · chair

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. mine — for digging
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. bear — the animal
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. saw — the tool
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. saw — the tool
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. bat — the animal
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. chair — a leader
  22. bark — to shout
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bear — the animal

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