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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. staff — a stick
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. staff — employees
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. craft — boats
  11. content — happy
  12. staff — employees
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. track — a song
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. track — a path
  17. bass — the fish
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. craft — a skill
  20. content — the amount
  21. wound — an injury
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bass — low music

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