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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. drill — army training
  3. chip — to eat
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. drill — the tool
  6. land — ground
  7. mark — a trace
  8. land — a country
  9. chip — for betting
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. land — to come down
  12. ground — the earth
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. net — after costs
  15. ground — crushed
  16. net — for catching
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. mark — a grade
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. drill — a practice
  21. track — a path
  22. ground — a position
  23. track — a song
  24. net — in sport

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