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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. scale — size or range
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. cold — not warm
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. track — a song
  7. mark — a trace
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. file — a line of people
  11. cold — an illness
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. scale — in music
  14. file — a tool
  15. dip — to sink
  16. file — a document
  17. bore — to tire
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. bore — to drill
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. track — a path
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. track — to keep track
  24. cold — the Cold War

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