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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 120 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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. ball — a great time
  4. track — a path
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. race — a contest
  7. rest — what's left
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. squash — the sport
  10. squash — to crush
  11. file — a tool
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. file — a line of people
  14. rest — what's left
  15. mark — a trace
  16. mark — a grade
  17. race — the arms race
  18. bark — to shout
  19. track — a song
  20. file — a document
  21. track — to keep track
  22. rest — a break
  23. race — humankind
  24. ball — a dance

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