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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 keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. kid — to tease
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. kid — child
  5. shower — rain
  6. race — a contest
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. track — a song
  9. track — a path
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. shower — to wash
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. pit — a hole
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. pit — in a race
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. race — the arms race
  20. plane — a tool
  21. race — humankind
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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