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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. prune — to trim
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. track — a song
  7. prune — to trim
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. track — to keep track
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. mark — a trace
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. mark — a grade
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. sharp — clever
  18. bat — the animal
  19. foot — a measure
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. track — a path

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