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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. track — a path
  3. track — a song
  4. track — to keep track
  5. present — the time now
  6. present — a gift
  7. rest — a break
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. mine — for digging
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. rest — what's left
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. present — there
  16. bound — certain
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. bound — tied together
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. content — happy
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. content — the amount
  23. bound — obliged
  24. jam — in traffic

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