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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. game — wild animals
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. track — a path
  5. game — a match
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. tear — from crying
  8. craft — a skill
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. craft — boats
  11. track — a song
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. tear — to rip
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. track — to keep track
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. tear — from crying

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