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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 ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. track — to keep track
  3. track — a path
  4. track — a song
  5. staff — employees
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. ground — a position
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. kid — child
  11. kid — to tease
  12. spring — of water
  13. clip — for paper
  14. clip — a video
  15. clip — to cut
  16. staff — employees
  17. spring — a coil
  18. staff — a stick
  19. spring — the season
  20. ground — crushed
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. snap — to click
  24. fan — a supporter

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