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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. fall — the season
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. track — a song
  5. track — a path
  6. track — to keep track
  7. last — to go on
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. mark — a trace
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. wound — an injury
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. wound — an injury
  17. fall — to drop
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. kick — in football
  22. fall — to drop
  23. mark — a grade
  24. last — finally

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