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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of a king
  4. season — of the year
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. bore — to drill
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. pop — music
  12. season — in sport
  13. dip — to sink
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. court — of law
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. track — a path
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. bore — to tire
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. pop — soda
  22. track — a song
  23. pop — to visit
  24. dip — to dunk

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