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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.

Make a worksheet

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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. track — a path
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. capital — money
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. track — a song
  14. capital — a city
  15. scale — in music
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. scale — size or range
  18. dip — to sink

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