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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. track — a path
  4. bear — the animal
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. bear — the animal
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. land — to come down
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. clip — to cut
  13. pop — to visit
  14. track — to keep track
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. clip — a video
  17. clip — for paper
  18. pop — music
  19. land — ground
  20. track — a song
  21. sharp — clever
  22. land — a country
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. pop — soda

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