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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 120 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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. track — a path
  3. tear — from crying
  4. rash — a series
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. fine — high quality
  7. swing — in golf
  8. rash — hasty
  9. swing — music
  10. fine — all right
  11. swing — to play on
  12. bass — the fish
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. bass — low music
  16. squash — to crush
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. tear — to rip
  20. fork — in a road
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. tear — from crying
  23. squash — the sport
  24. track — to keep track

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