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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 116 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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. track — to keep track
  3. wake — a trail
  4. track — a path
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. march — the month
  7. track — a song
  8. bark — to shout
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. bat — the animal
  11. bank — of a river
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. bank — for money
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bank — for money
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. march — music
  18. spring — of water
  19. spring — the season
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. spring — a coil
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. pass — a permit

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