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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. track — a song
  3. track — to keep track
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. present — a gift
  6. bank — for money
  7. clip — to cut
  8. track — a path
  9. mark — a trace
  10. bank — for money
  11. present — there
  12. bank — of a river
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. scale — in music
  15. wax — to grow
  16. clip — a video
  17. mark — a grade
  18. spring — the season
  19. spring — of water
  20. clip — for paper
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. spring — a coil
  23. present — the time now
  24. scale — size or range

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