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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. rest — a break
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. spring — the season
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. track — a path
  8. track — to keep track
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. kid — child
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. track — a song
  14. pound — a weight
  15. rest — what's left
  16. season — in sport
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. season — of the year
  19. kid — to tease
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. spring — of water
  24. spring — a coil

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