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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. net — in sport
  3. present — there
  4. clip — a video
  5. net — after costs
  6. track — a path
  7. season — of the year
  8. net — for catching
  9. rash — a series
  10. present — a gift
  11. suit — in cards
  12. clip — to cut
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. clip — for paper
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. season — in sport
  17. track — a song
  18. suit — to fit
  19. rash — hasty
  20. roll — a list
  21. roll — a cake
  22. present — the time now
  23. suit — clothes
  24. season — to add flavour

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