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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. chip — for betting
  3. chip — to eat
  4. bound — obliged
  5. perch — the fish
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. bound — certain
  9. face — to confront
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cold — not warm
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. track — to keep track
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. face — to point toward
  16. track — a path
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bound — tied together
  21. face — part of the head
  22. wake — a trail
  23. kid — to tease
  24. kid — child

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