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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. last — to go on
  3. dip — to sink
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. track — a song
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. file — a line of people
  9. track — a path
  10. firm — a company
  11. file — a tool
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. pass — a permit
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. last — finally
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. firm — steady
  19. ball — a dance
  20. ball — a great time
  21. last — final
  22. firm — decided
  23. file — a document
  24. pass — to succeed

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