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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. saw — the tool
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. pound — a weight
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. snap — to click
  7. track — a song
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. track — to keep track
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. last — finally
  20. saw — the tool
  21. track — a path
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. last — final
  24. last — to go on

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