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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. scale — size or range
  5. staff — a stick
  6. track — a path
  7. track — to keep track
  8. club — for dancing
  9. staff — employees
  10. ground — the earth
  11. net — after costs
  12. fork — in a road
  13. ground — a position
  14. club — for golf
  15. ground — crushed
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. dip — to sink
  20. staff — employees
  21. scale — in music
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — for catching
  24. club — a group

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