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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 120 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. saw — the tool
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. cold — an illness
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. track — a song
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. saw — the tool
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. track — a path
  14. squash — to crush
  15. track — to keep track
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. cold — not warm
  18. calf — of the leg

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