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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 116 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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. present — there
  4. present — the time now
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. mark — a grade
  9. track — a path
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. scale — size or range
  12. track — to keep track
  13. kid — child
  14. snap — to click
  15. present — a gift
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. stock — shares
  18. kid — to tease
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. track — a song
  21. mark — a trace
  22. stock — goods
  23. scale — in music
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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