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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. scale — in music
  3. branch — a division
  4. hand — in cards
  5. chest — of your body
  6. scale — size or range
  7. track — a song
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. track — a path
  11. hand — help
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. sharp — clever
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. chest — of your body
  19. fine — high quality
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. chest — a box
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. fine — all right
  24. racket — a loud noise

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