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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. track — a path
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. track — a song
  8. rest — what's left
  9. file — a tool
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. rest — a break
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. bat — the animal
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. file — a line of people
  19. pound — a weight
  20. file — a document
  21. track — to keep track
  22. rest — what's left
  23. bear — the animal
  24. temple — side of the head

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