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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. track — to keep track
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. wake — a trail
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. land — to come down
  11. bat — the animal
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. land — ground
  16. row — a line
  17. lie — to recline
  18. track — a path
  19. row — to paddle
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. land — a country
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. track — a song

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