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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. track — a path
  3. present — a gift
  4. present — the time now
  5. cell — in biology
  6. row — a line
  7. can — to be able to
  8. can — a tin
  9. present — there
  10. can — a tin
  11. row — to paddle
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. track — to keep track
  15. capital — a city
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. capital — money
  18. last — finally
  19. track — a song
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. last — to go on
  23. last — final
  24. trunk — of a tree

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