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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. track — a path
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. track — to keep track
  6. mate — a partner
  7. ball — a great time
  8. kick — in football
  9. can — a tin
  10. mate — to breed
  11. cold — an illness
  12. can — to be able to
  13. mark — a trace
  14. season — in sport
  15. ball — a dance
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. season — of the year
  18. can — a tin
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. track — a song
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. mate — a friend
  24. ball — a round shape

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