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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. key — for a lock
  3. cold — not warm
  4. stand — to bear
  5. track — to keep track
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. swing — in golf
  9. branch — a division
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cold — an illness
  12. key — in music
  13. spell — letters
  14. spell — a short time
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. spell — magic
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. track — a path
  19. track — a song
  20. swing — to play on
  21. key — the most important part
  22. swing — music
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. branch — of a tree

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