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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. last — to go on
  3. spell — a short time
  4. row — a line
  5. toast — bread
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. track — a path
  10. track — a song
  11. ball — a great time
  12. row — to paddle
  13. spell — magic
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. spell — letters
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. snap — to click
  19. last — final
  20. ball — a dance
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. bass — the fish
  23. last — finally
  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