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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 116 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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. cell — a phone
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. track — a path
  5. cell — in biology
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. hand — in cards
  9. kid — to tease
  10. track — to keep track
  11. hand — help
  12. march — music
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. track — a song
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. march — the month
  17. object — a thing
  18. object — an aim
  19. object — to protest
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. march — the month
  22. mark — a trace
  23. mark — a grade
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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