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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. track — a path
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. staff — employees
  7. cold — not warm
  8. staff — employees
  9. cold — an illness
  10. chest — of your body
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. row — to paddle
  13. cue — a hint
  14. row — a line
  15. staff — a stick
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. cue — a signal
  18. chest — a box
  19. chest — of your body
  20. track — a song
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. cue — for pool
  24. leaves — to go away

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