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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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. ground — crushed
  3. track — a song
  4. drill — a practice
  5. drill — army training
  6. ground — a position
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. drill — the tool
  9. court — for sport
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. hand — in cards
  12. track — to keep track
  13. court — of law
  14. bound — obliged
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. bound — tied together
  18. court — of a king
  19. hand — help
  20. ground — the earth
  21. bound — certain
  22. track — a path
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. rash — hasty

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