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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. track — to keep track
  3. last — finally
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. ball — a great time
  7. pit — in a race
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. clip — for paper
  10. band — a ring
  11. chair — a leader
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. track — a song
  14. pit — a hole
  15. last — final
  16. clip — a video
  17. ball — a dance
  18. track — a path
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. clip — to cut
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. last — to go on

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