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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. court — of law
  3. mug — to rob
  4. mug — a cup
  5. track — a path
  6. net — in sport
  7. mug — a face
  8. rush — hurry
  9. row — to paddle
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. march — music
  13. cell — a phone
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. march — the month
  16. march — the month
  17. row — a line
  18. net — after costs
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. cell — in biology
  21. net — for catching
  22. court — for sport
  23. track — to keep track
  24. court — of a king

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