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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. track — a song
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. pound — a weight
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. dip — to sink
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. bark — to shout
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. branch — a division
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. track — a path
  18. pound — for dogs

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