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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. field — farmland
  4. track — a song
  5. bass — low music
  6. field — a subject
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. mug — a cup
  10. field — for sport
  11. present — the time now
  12. bass — the fish
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — in cards
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. mug — a face
  17. present — a gift
  18. track — a path
  19. mug — to rob
  20. shower — to wash
  21. pass — a permit
  22. present — there
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. track — to keep track

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