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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. suit — clothes
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. shower — rain
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. suit — in cards
  8. ball — a dance
  9. shower — to wash
  10. cell — a phone
  11. suit — to fit
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. ball — a great time
  14. capital — money
  15. cell — in biology
  16. pop — music
  17. capital — a city
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. pop — to visit
  20. track — a path
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. pop — soda
  24. track — to keep track

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