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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 116 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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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. mouse — for a computer
  4. race — humankind
  5. kick — in football
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. track — to keep track
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. game — a match
  14. track — a song
  15. game — wild animals
  16. race — a contest
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. race — the arms race
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. snap — to click
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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