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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 teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. degree — from a university
  4. can — to be able to
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. roll — a cake
  8. can — a tin
  9. wake — a trail
  10. can — a tin
  11. track — to keep track
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. track — a song
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. field — for sport
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. prune — to trim
  19. track — a path
  20. prune — to trim
  21. field — farmland
  22. degree — temperature
  23. degree — an amount
  24. field — a subject

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