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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 124 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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. track — to keep track
  3. bark — to shout
  4. wake — a trail
  5. court — of law
  6. clip — a video
  7. clip — for paper
  8. club — for dancing
  9. track — a path
  10. club — a group
  11. club — for golf
  12. clip — to cut
  13. staff — a stick
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. track — a song
  18. deal — to handle
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. court — for sport
  21. staff — employees
  22. staff — employees
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. court — of a king

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