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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 116 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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. saw — the tool
  3. mark — a trace
  4. chip — to eat
  5. track — to keep track
  6. last — final
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. saw — the tool
  9. last — finally
  10. court — of law
  11. season — of the year
  12. chip — for betting
  13. last — to go on
  14. court — for sport
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. track — a path
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. court — of a king
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. mark — a grade
  22. season — in sport
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. chip — in a computer

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