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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 bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. chest — a box
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. track — to keep track
  7. bat — the animal
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cap — a hat
  10. cap — a lid
  11. cap — of ice
  12. kick — in football
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. chest — of your body
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. chest — of your body
  19. track — a song
  20. track — a path
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. prune — to trim
  24. bat — for baseball

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