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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. club — for dancing
  3. track — a path
  4. stock — goods
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. plane — a tool
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. track — a song
  9. stock — shares
  10. march — the month
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. club — for golf
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. bound — obliged
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. club — a group
  18. march — music
  19. march — the month
  20. bound — tied together
  21. bound — certain
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. branch — a division

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