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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. swing — music
  3. track — to keep track
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. firm — a company
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. capital — money
  11. swing — to play on
  12. firm — decided
  13. swing — in golf
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. wax — to grow
  16. file — a tool
  17. track — a song
  18. capital — a city
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. firm — steady
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. file — a line of people
  23. file — a document
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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