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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. track — to keep track
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. track — a song
  6. ground — the earth
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. band — a music group
  9. drill — the tool
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. rock — music
  12. spell — letters
  13. band — a ring
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. spell — magic
  16. ground — a position
  17. rock — a stone
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. drill — a practice
  21. ground — crushed
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. spell — a short time
  24. drill — army training

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