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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. club — for golf
  3. track — a path
  4. season — of the year
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. bank — for money
  7. hand — help
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. hand — in cards
  10. track — to keep track
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. band — a ring
  13. season — in sport
  14. band — a music group
  15. bank — for money
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bank — of a river
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. tear — from crying
  22. club — for dancing
  23. club — a group
  24. tear — to rip

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