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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. track — to keep track
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. lean — to bend
  5. court — of a king
  6. date — the fruit
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. staff — employees
  9. bat — the animal
  10. object — a thing
  11. court — for sport
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. staff — employees
  14. wound — an injury
  15. object — an aim
  16. lean — thin
  17. object — to protest
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. staff — a stick
  20. track — a path
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. wound — an injury
  23. court — of law
  24. bat — for baseball

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