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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. track — a path
  3. mate — a partner
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. key — the most important part
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. mate — to breed
  9. march — music
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — final
  12. march — the month
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. last — finally
  15. track — a song
  16. key — in music
  17. kick — in football
  18. key — for a lock
  19. bark — to shout
  20. march — the month
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. mate — a friend
  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