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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. pop — soda
  5. track — a song
  6. press — to push
  7. capital — money
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. pop — music
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. pop — to visit
  12. track — a path
  13. press — a publisher
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. ball — a dance
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. capital — a city
  18. track — to keep track
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. ball — a great time
  21. wake — a trail
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. pitch — completely
  24. press — newspapers

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