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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 120 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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  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. ball — a round shape
  2. season — in sport
  3. ball — a dance
  4. track — a song
  5. season — of the year
  6. clip — for paper
  7. can — a tin
  8. stem — to come from
  9. fall — to drop
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. can — a tin
  12. can — to be able to
  13. ball — a great time
  14. clip — a video
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. track — to keep track
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. fall — the season
  21. clip — to cut
  22. fall — to drop
  23. track — a path
  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