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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  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. last — to go on
  2. track — to keep track
  3. pitch — completely
  4. file — a document
  5. degree — an amount
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. track — a song
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. degree — from a university
  11. file — a tool
  12. row — to paddle
  13. last — finally
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. lean — thin
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. file — a line of people
  19. degree — temperature
  20. lean — to bend
  21. row — a line
  22. track — a path
  23. racket — a loud noise
  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