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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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. last — final
  4. track — to keep track
  5. spell — magic
  6. bank — for money
  7. march — the month
  8. chip — for betting
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — the tool
  11. march — the month
  12. last — finally
  13. pop — music
  14. track — a song
  15. spell — letters
  16. bank — for money
  17. pop — soda
  18. last — to go on
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. march — music
  21. pop — to visit
  22. spell — a short time
  23. bank — of a river
  24. chip — to eat

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