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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. spell — letters
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. cue — a hint
  7. spell — a short time
  8. track — a path
  9. ground — a position
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. cue — a signal
  12. kick — in football
  13. spell — magic
  14. fine — all right
  15. track — a song
  16. fine — high quality
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. bark — to shout
  19. cue — for pool
  20. ground — crushed
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. ground — the earth
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. kick — with a leg

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