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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 water is too ________________.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. mark — a trace
  3. track — to keep track
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. suit — in cards
  6. season — in sport
  7. track — a song
  8. suit — clothes
  9. court — of law
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. track — a path
  12. mark — a grade
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. suit — to fit
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. cold — an illness
  17. court — of a king
  18. pound — a weight
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. court — for sport
  24. season — of the year

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