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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. scale — size or range
  3. track — to keep track
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. rush — hurry
  6. scale — in music
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. fall — the season
  10. dip — to sink
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. plane — a tool
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. game — wild animals
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. track — a path
  19. game — a match
  20. fall — to drop
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. fall — to drop
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. game — a kind of play

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