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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. cap — a lid
  3. cap — of ice
  4. scale — size or range
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. net — after costs
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. net — for catching
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. ball — a dance
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. cap — a hat
  13. kick — in football
  14. kid — to tease
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. kid — child
  18. track — a song
  19. ball — a great time
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. track — to keep track
  22. net — in sport
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. scale — in music

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