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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. tear — to rip
  3. tube — a container
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. bound — tied together
  6. file — a tool
  7. club — a group
  8. bound — obliged
  9. bound — certain
  10. charge — electricity
  11. file — a line of people
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. tear — from crying
  16. file — a document
  17. charge — a price
  18. club — for dancing
  19. track — a path
  20. tube — the underground
  21. chair — a leader
  22. charge — in control
  23. club — for golf
  24. track — to keep track

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