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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 116 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 get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. spell — a short time
  5. track — a song
  6. track — to keep track
  7. wake — a trail
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. land — ground
  11. current — of water
  12. spell — magic
  13. spell — letters
  14. track — a path
  15. land — to come down
  16. kick — in football
  17. current — happening now
  18. land — a country
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. sharp — clever
  22. current — electric
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. kick — with a leg

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