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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. rock — music
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. last — finally
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. row — to paddle
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. mark — a trace
  10. mark — a grade
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. track — to keep track
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. last — to go on
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. row — a line
  17. rock — a stone
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. tube — the underground
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. tube — a container
  22. track — a song
  23. last — final
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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