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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. wound — an injury
  3. track — to keep track
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. rest — what's left
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. track — a path
  9. rest — a break
  10. present — there
  11. bark — to shout
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. wound — an injury
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. rest — what's left
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. pound — a weight
  19. present — a gift
  20. row — to paddle
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. present — the time now
  23. row — a line
  24. racket — for tennis

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