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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. can — a tin
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. track — to keep track
  5. shower — rain
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. field — for sport
  9. pass — a permit
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. can — to be able to
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. can — a tin
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. spring — a coil
  17. spring — of water
  18. field — farmland
  19. shower — to wash
  20. track — a song
  21. spring — the season
  22. field — a subject
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. calf — of the leg

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