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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. track — to keep track
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. drill — a practice
  6. land — ground
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. track — a song
  9. sharp — clever
  10. branch — a division
  11. land — a country
  12. land — to come down
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. drill — the tool
  15. drill — army training
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. sharp — exactly

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