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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 get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. sharp — clever
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. track — to keep track
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. march — the month
  13. march — music
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. row — to paddle
  16. kick — in football
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. track — a song
  20. row — a line
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. march — the month
  24. nail — for a hammer

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