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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. track — to keep track
  3. race — humankind
  4. kick — in football
  5. race — a contest
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. spring — of water
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. race — the arms race
  13. game — wild animals
  14. track — a path
  15. spring — the season
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. foot — a measure
  19. spring — a coil
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. game — a match
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. kick — a thrill

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