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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 took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. net — for catching
  3. track — to keep track
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. spell — letters
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. spell — magic
  8. bear — the animal
  9. sharp — clever
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. track — a path
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. bark — to shout
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. spell — a short time
  17. bear — the animal
  18. net — after costs
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. net — in sport
  24. wave — of the sea

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