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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. spell — magic
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. bass — low music
  5. bear — the animal
  6. field — a subject
  7. key — for a lock
  8. bear — the animal
  9. present — a gift
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. key — the most important part
  12. track — a song
  13. present — there
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. track — a path
  16. spell — a short time
  17. key — in music
  18. spell — letters
  19. present — the time now
  20. field — farmland
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. bass — the fish
  24. field — for sport

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