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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. saw — the tool
  3. land — ground
  4. land — to come down
  5. land — a country
  6. key — the most important part
  7. stand — to bear
  8. tear — from crying
  9. key — for a lock
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. key — in music
  13. saw — the tool
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. track — a song
  16. bat — the animal
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. tear — from crying
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. track — to keep track
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. tear — to rip

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