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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 120 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 little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. bear — the animal
  3. cold — not warm
  4. track — a song
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. rest — what's left
  9. cold — an illness
  10. rest — what's left
  11. game — wild animals
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. mark — a grade
  14. rest — a break
  15. bear — the animal
  16. chip — to eat
  17. mark — a trace
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. pound — a weight
  20. track — a path
  21. game — a match
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. chip — for betting

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