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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. ball — a dance
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. toast — bread
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. ball — a great time
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. track — a path
  10. band — a ring
  11. mark — a grade
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. track — to keep track
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. file — a tool
  18. mark — a trace
  19. file — a document
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. bat — the animal
  22. file — a line of people
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. band — a music 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