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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. track — to keep track
  3. track — a song
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. cell — in biology
  6. game — a match
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. last — finally
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. land — to come down
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. last — to go on
  14. land — ground
  15. kid — child
  16. bear — the animal
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. kick — in football
  19. land — a country
  20. last — final
  21. bear — the animal
  22. track — a path
  23. kid — to tease
  24. cell — a phone

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