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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. track — a path
  3. swing — to play on
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. mug — to rob
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. track — a song
  10. mug — a face
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. kick — in football
  14. track — to keep track
  15. swing — music
  16. mug — a cup
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. foot — a measure
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. hand — help
  22. hand — in cards
  23. swing — in golf
  24. pitcher — a jug

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