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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. chest — of your body
  3. file — a line of people
  4. roll — a list
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. face — part of the head
  7. track — a song
  8. file — a tool
  9. chest — a box
  10. file — a document
  11. face — to confront
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. face — to point toward
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. roll — a cake
  16. track — a path
  17. bulb — for light
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. stem — to come from
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. chest — of your body
  23. deal — to handle
  24. bulb — for light

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