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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. track — a song
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. roll — a list
  5. track — a path
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. roll — a cake
  9. track — to keep track
  10. pass — a permit
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. race — a contest
  14. race — the arms race
  15. bat — the animal
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. race — humankind
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. roll — on a roll

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