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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. track — a path
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. track — to keep track
  5. track — a song
  6. last — to go on
  7. last — finally
  8. net — in sport
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. land — a country
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. net — after costs
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. club — for dancing
  16. club — for golf
  17. land — to come down
  18. land — ground
  19. pass — a permit
  20. scale — size or range
  21. last — final
  22. net — for catching
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. club — a group

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