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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. spell — letters
  3. track — a path
  4. cap — a lid
  5. current — of water
  6. mine — for digging
  7. current — electric
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. row — a line
  10. spell — magic
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. row — to paddle
  18. cap — a hat
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. spell — a short time
  22. cap — of ice
  23. track — a song
  24. current — happening now

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