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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 120 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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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 song
  3. rock — a stone
  4. march — the month
  5. fall — to drop
  6. pop — music
  7. pop — soda
  8. march — the month
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. track — a path
  11. pop — to visit
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. rock — music
  15. march — music
  16. wound — an injury
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fall — the season
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. current — of water
  23. current — electric
  24. current — happening now

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