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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. track — a song
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. track — a path
  6. row — to paddle
  7. degree — from a university
  8. degree — an amount
  9. degree — temperature
  10. bear — the animal
  11. band — a ring
  12. track — to keep track
  13. content — the amount
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. band — a music group
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. content — happy
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. bear — the animal
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. row — a line

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