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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. track — a song
  5. scale — in music
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. mark — a trace
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. branch — a division
  10. scale — size or range
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. track — to keep track
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. cold — not warm
  16. track — a path
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. cell — a phone
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cold — an illness
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. cabinet — ministers

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