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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: row · calf · cold · bound · season · mark · track · chip

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  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. row — a quarrel
  2. season — of the year
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. mark — a grade
  5. track — a path
  6. track — a song
  7. row — to paddle
  8. mark — a trace
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. chip — to eat
  12. chip — for betting
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. track — to keep track
  15. bound — tied together
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cold — an illness
  18. bound — obliged
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. row — a line
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. bound — certain
  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