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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. track — a song
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. squash — to crush
  6. wound — an injury
  7. spell — a short time
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. spell — letters
  10. board — to get on
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. mine — for digging
  13. wound — an injury
  14. board — a committee
  15. track — a path
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. tear — from crying
  18. spell — magic
  19. tear — from crying
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. bear — the animal
  22. tear — to rip
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. squash — the sport

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