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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 ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. track — a path
  4. pop — music
  5. mark — a trace
  6. track — to keep track
  7. bank — of a river
  8. pop — to visit
  9. court — of a king
  10. court — for sport
  11. mark — a grade
  12. wound — an injury
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. bank — for money
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. rash — hasty
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. pop — soda
  19. court — of law
  20. wound — an injury
  21. rash — a series
  22. dip — to sink
  23. track — a song
  24. bank — for money

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