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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. lie — to recline
  4. bat — the animal
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. track — to keep track
  8. court — for sport
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. season — of the year
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. court — of a king
  13. march — music
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. track — a song
  17. prune — to trim
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. court — of law
  20. march — the month
  21. season — in sport
  22. march — the month
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. prune — to trim

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