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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. rash — a series
  3. field — a subject
  4. bass — low music
  5. spring — the season
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. spring — a coil
  9. bass — the fish
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. field — for sport
  12. track — to keep track
  13. key — the most important part
  14. field — farmland
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. track — a song
  17. rash — hasty
  18. key — for a lock
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. key — in music
  21. spring — of water
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. pitch — completely
  24. rash — on the skin

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