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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 120 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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. chip — to eat
  3. key — for a lock
  4. rush — hurry
  5. pop — to visit
  6. track — a song
  7. key — in music
  8. ground — crushed
  9. mate — a partner
  10. pop — soda
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. shower — to wash
  13. ground — the earth
  14. pop — music
  15. mate — to breed
  16. mate — a friend
  17. track — a path
  18. shower — rain
  19. chip — for betting
  20. key — the most important part
  21. ground — a position
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. rush — a thrill

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