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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. rock — music
  3. last — finally
  4. bound — certain
  5. track — to keep track
  6. last — to go on
  7. rock — a stone
  8. snap — to click
  9. current — happening now
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. bound — obliged
  12. current — of water
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. track — a song
  17. current — electric
  18. band — a music group
  19. band — a ring
  20. bound — tied together
  21. content — the amount
  22. track — a path
  23. content — happy
  24. last — final

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