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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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. track — a song
  3. dip — to sink
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. hand — in cards
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. track — to keep track
  9. band — a music group
  10. present — there
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. present — the time now
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. hand — help
  19. band — a ring
  20. present — a gift
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. snap — to click
  24. safe — a strongbox

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