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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 felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. season — of the year
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. season — in sport
  5. degree — from a university
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. degree — an amount
  8. track — a song
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. mark — a trace
  11. last — final
  12. foot — a measure
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. track — a path
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. track — to keep track
  18. club — for dancing
  19. last — to go on
  20. club — for golf
  21. last — finally
  22. club — a group
  23. mark — a grade
  24. degree — temperature

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