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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. track — to keep track
  3. shower — to wash
  4. cold — not warm
  5. cold — an illness
  6. cap — a hat
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. wound — an injury
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. cap — of ice
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. track — a path
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. track — a song
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. shower — rain
  23. cap — a lid
  24. wound — an injury

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