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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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. track — to keep track
  3. cold — not warm
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. track — a song
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. ball — a great time
  8. bore — to drill
  9. spring — a coil
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. bore — to tire
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. track — a path
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. kick — in football
  18. spring — the season
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. spring — of water
  24. ball — a dance

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