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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 120 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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. bat — the animal
  3. track — a song
  4. suit — to fit
  5. race — a contest
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. court — of law
  8. track — to keep track
  9. season — in sport
  10. race — humankind
  11. suit — in cards
  12. court — of a king
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. suit — clothes
  17. season — of the year
  18. prune — to trim
  19. prune — to trim
  20. race — the arms race
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. court — for sport

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