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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. tear — to rip
  4. tear — from crying
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. rest — what's left
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. root — the cause
  10. track — a song
  11. rest — a break
  12. tear — from crying
  13. track — to keep track
  14. net — in sport
  15. rest — what's left
  16. net — after costs
  17. bass — low music
  18. scale — size or range
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. scale — in music
  21. net — for catching
  22. root — of a plant
  23. bass — the fish
  24. root — of a word

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