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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. fall — to drop
  4. track — a path
  5. pound — a weight
  6. firm — decided
  7. march — the month
  8. march — the month
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. wound — an injury
  12. shower — to wash
  13. fall — to drop
  14. firm — steady
  15. track — to keep track
  16. wound — an injury
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. march — music
  22. fall — the season
  23. shower — rain
  24. firm — a company

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