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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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. track — a path
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. wound — an injury
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. roll — a list
  7. date — the fruit
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. roll — a cake
  10. rest — what's left
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. rest — what's left
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. capital — a city
  16. track — to keep track
  17. rest — a break
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. wound — an injury
  22. capital — money
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. fan — a supporter

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