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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 116 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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. wind — moving air
  3. cue — for pool
  4. clip — for paper
  5. track — a path
  6. last — finally
  7. clip — to cut
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. last — to go on
  10. wind — moving air
  11. track — to keep track
  12. bank — of a river
  13. last — final
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. cue — a signal
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. clip — a video
  21. bank — for money
  22. bank — for money
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. cue — a hint

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