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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. pop — to visit
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. track — a path
  5. pop — soda
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. net — in sport
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. track — a song
  13. track — to keep track
  14. foot — a measure
  15. net — for catching
  16. net — after costs
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. pop — music
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. cold — an illness
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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