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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. shower — rain
  4. bear — the animal
  5. present — a gift
  6. ball — a great time
  7. present — there
  8. shower — to wash
  9. court — for sport
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. track — to keep track
  12. court — of law
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. bear — the animal
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. sharp — clever
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. track — a path
  20. present — the time now
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. court — of a king
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. ball — a dance

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