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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 120 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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. firm — a company
  3. court — of law
  4. court — for sport
  5. cap — a lid
  6. cap — a hat
  7. court — of a king
  8. cap — of ice
  9. spring — the season
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. firm — steady
  12. fork — in a road
  13. track — a song
  14. bark — to shout
  15. spring — of water
  16. lie — to recline
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. track — a path
  19. firm — decided
  20. spring — a coil
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. lie — an untruth

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