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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 124 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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. track — a song
  3. rest — what's left
  4. perch — the fish
  5. fall — to drop
  6. kid — to tease
  7. current — happening now
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. rest — what's left
  10. current — of water
  11. fall — the season
  12. track — a path
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. rest — a break
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. fall — to drop
  18. current — electric
  19. content — the amount
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. track — to keep track
  22. wake — a trail
  23. content — happy
  24. perch — for a bird

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