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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. row — a line
  3. track — a path
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. track — a song
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. season — in sport
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. season — of the year
  19. track — to keep track
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. degree — an amount
  22. degree — temperature
  23. row — to paddle
  24. degree — from a university

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