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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. march — the month
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. bass — low music
  5. firm — decided
  6. saw — the tool
  7. hand — in cards
  8. ball — a dance
  9. track — to keep track
  10. bass — the fish
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. saw — the tool
  13. ball — a great time
  14. firm — steady
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. rash — hasty
  18. firm — a company
  19. rash — a series
  20. track — a song
  21. march — the month
  22. march — music
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. hand — help

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