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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. tear — from crying
  3. track — to keep track
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. field — a subject
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. tear — to rip
  10. bass — the fish
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. tear — from crying
  13. firm — decided
  14. firm — steady
  15. field — farmland
  16. bass — low music
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. track — a song
  19. field — for sport
  20. band — a music group
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. track — a path
  23. plane — a tool
  24. firm — a company

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