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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. chest — a box
  3. track — a song
  4. track — to keep track
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. chip — for betting
  8. file — a document
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. file — a line of people
  11. track — a path
  12. chest — of your body
  13. march — the month
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. file — a tool
  17. march — the month
  18. chest — of your body
  19. chip — to eat
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. march — music
  22. wind — moving air
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. wind — moving air

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