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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. foot — a measure
  3. spring — a coil
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. track — a path
  6. track — to keep track
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. object — to protest
  9. object — a thing
  10. spring — the season
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. wake — a trail
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. hand — in cards
  16. track — a song
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. object — an aim
  21. date — the fruit
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. calf — a young animal

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