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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. fall — the season
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. track — a path
  6. wax — to grow
  7. pit — a hole
  8. fall — to drop
  9. court — for sport
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. hand — help
  12. court — of a king
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. pit — in a race
  15. track — a song
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. fall — to drop
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. hand — in cards
  23. stem — to come from
  24. court — of law

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