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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. spell — magic
  3. track — a song
  4. wound — an injury
  5. track — a path
  6. lean — to bend
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. wound — an injury
  11. kick — in football
  12. tear — from crying
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. track — to keep track
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. spell — a short time
  20. lean — thin
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. tear — to rip
  23. tear — from crying
  24. leaves — to go away

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