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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 bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. track — a song
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. cold — not warm
  6. track — to keep track
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. shower — rain
  12. clip — to cut
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. pitch — completely
  16. cold — an illness
  17. shower — to wash
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. track — a path
  20. rush — hurry
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. clip — a video
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. clip — for paper

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