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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 124 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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. net — for catching
  3. net — in sport
  4. last — final
  5. track — a path
  6. last — to go on
  7. last — finally
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. chip — to eat
  10. season — of the year
  11. bound — tied together
  12. track — to keep track
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. bound — certain
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. chip — for betting
  21. bound — obliged
  22. net — after costs
  23. track — a song
  24. season — in sport

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