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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. track — a song
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. track — to keep track
  6. club — for dancing
  7. court — for sport
  8. can — a tin
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. can — to be able to
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. court — of law
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. branch — a division
  15. band — a ring
  16. net — after costs
  17. can — a tin
  18. net — in sport
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. net — for catching
  21. court — of a king
  22. band — a music group
  23. club — a group
  24. club — for golf

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