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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 keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. track — a path
  3. capital — money
  4. degree — from a university
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. suit — to fit
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. capital — a city
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. suit — clothes
  14. suit — in cards
  15. track — a song
  16. degree — temperature
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. pass — a permit
  19. degree — an amount
  20. wind — moving air
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. wind — moving air
  23. snap — to click
  24. pass — to spend time

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