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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. clip — a video
  3. track — to keep track
  4. current — happening now
  5. track — a song
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. current — electric
  9. pound — a weight
  10. hand — in cards
  11. fine — all right
  12. clip — for paper
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. rest — a break
  15. current — of water
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. firm — decided
  18. hand — help
  19. clip — to cut
  20. rest — what's left
  21. firm — a company
  22. rest — what's left
  23. firm — steady
  24. fine — high quality

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