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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. track — a song
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. row — a line
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. last — finally
  8. sharp — clever
  9. bass — low music
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. last — to go on
  12. track — a path
  13. last — final
  14. bass — the fish
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. track — to keep track
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. row — to paddle
  24. racket — for tennis

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