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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. shower — to wash
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. shower — rain
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. mine — for digging
  8. track — to keep track
  9. tear — from crying
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. kid — child
  13. tear — to rip
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. foot — a measure
  17. tear — from crying
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. kid — to tease
  20. pit — a hole
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. track — a song
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. pit — in a race

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