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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. spring — of water
  3. spring — the season
  4. track — to keep track
  5. tear — from crying
  6. ground — crushed
  7. lean — to bend
  8. pound — a weight
  9. ground — a position
  10. spell — a short time
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. ground — the earth
  13. chip — to eat
  14. spell — magic
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. tear — to rip
  17. lean — thin
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. chip — for betting
  20. spring — a coil
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. spell — letters
  23. tear — from crying
  24. track — a path

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