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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. spring — a coil
  3. track — a path
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. mark — a trace
  6. wound — an injury
  7. fine — all right
  8. track — to keep track
  9. spring — of water
  10. track — a song
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. mark — a grade
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. fine — high quality
  16. bear — the animal
  17. wound — an injury
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. bear — the animal
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. spring — the season
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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