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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. bound — obliged
  4. mug — a cup
  5. fine — all right
  6. track — a song
  7. track — a path
  8. cold — an illness
  9. wake — a trail
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. track — to keep track
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. fine — high quality
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bound — certain
  20. cold — not warm
  21. row — a line
  22. row — to paddle
  23. mug — to rob
  24. wake — before a funeral

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