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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. file — a document
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. track — a path
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. present — there
  10. lean — thin
  11. present — the time now
  12. present — a gift
  13. file — a line of people
  14. kick — in football
  15. game — a match
  16. file — a tool
  17. game — wild animals
  18. track — a song
  19. lean — to bend
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. stem — to come from
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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