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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 124 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. track — a path
  5. hand — in cards
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. pop — to visit
  9. hand — help
  10. pop — soda
  11. track — to keep track
  12. row — a line
  13. track — a song
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. season — in sport
  17. lean — to bend
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. pop — music
  21. row — to paddle
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. deal — to handle
  24. lean — thin

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