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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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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. track — a song
  3. saw — the tool
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. saw — the tool
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. cold — not warm
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. cold — an illness
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. track — to keep track
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. jam — a tight spot

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