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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. swing — music
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. track — to keep track
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. key — the most important part
  10. key — in music
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. root — of a plant
  13. root — the cause
  14. swing — to play on
  15. bulb — for light
  16. key — for a lock
  17. season — of the year
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. track — a song
  20. bulb — for light
  21. swing — in golf
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. season — in sport
  24. root — of a word

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