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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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 path
  3. present — a gift
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. drill — a practice
  6. ground — crushed
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. drill — the tool
  9. present — there
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. ground — the earth
  12. track — a song
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. shower — rain
  15. tube — the underground
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. ground — a position
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. drill — army training
  20. present — the time now
  21. shower — to wash
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. wake — a trail
  24. tube — a container

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