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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. face — to point toward
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. spring — the season
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. spring — of water
  8. face — part of the head
  9. track — a song
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. ball — a great time
  12. craft — boats
  13. craft — a skill
  14. roll — a cake
  15. ball — a dance
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. roll — a list
  18. spring — a coil
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. track — a path
  21. face — to confront
  22. sharp — clever
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. ball — a round shape

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