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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. spell — letters
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. ground — the earth
  6. capital — a city
  7. spell — a short time
  8. club — for golf
  9. foot — a measure
  10. field — for sport
  11. spell — magic
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. capital — money
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. field — a subject
  16. club — a group
  17. ground — a position
  18. track — a path
  19. field — farmland
  20. ground — crushed
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. track — a song
  24. club — for dancing

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