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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 116 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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. bass — the fish
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. track — a song
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. track — a path
  11. bass — low music
  12. kick — in football
  13. game — a match
  14. pit — a hole
  15. wax — to grow
  16. game — wild animals
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. pit — in a race

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