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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. spell — magic
  4. wind — moving air
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. track — to keep track
  7. spell — letters
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. staff — employees
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. spell — a short time
  13. fall — to drop
  14. wind — moving air
  15. fall — to drop
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. fall — the season
  18. track — a path
  19. staff — employees
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. staff — a stick
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. date — the fruit
  24. safe — a strongbox

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