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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 120 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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. track — a path
  4. march — music
  5. game — a match
  6. cue — a signal
  7. cue — for pool
  8. march — the month
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. last — finally
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. scale — size or range
  15. last — to go on
  16. game — wild animals
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. cue — a hint
  19. track — to keep track
  20. last — final
  21. scale — in music
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. march — the month
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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