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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. track — a path
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bear — the animal
  6. track — to keep track
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. cue — a signal
  11. pitch — completely
  12. bear — the animal
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. cue — for pool
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. cue — a hint
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. scale — size or range
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. fork — in a road
  22. track — a song
  23. scale — in music
  24. foot — a measure

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