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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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. wound — an injury
  3. wound — an injury
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. track — a song
  9. spring — the season
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. spring — of water
  14. spring — a coil
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. wax — to grow
  17. band — a ring
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. track — to keep track
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. dip — to sink
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. band — a music group

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