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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: track · spell · bat · leaves · sharp · march

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. sharp — clever
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. spell — letters
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. track — to keep track
  8. march — music
  9. spell — a short time
  10. bat — the animal
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. spell — magic
  14. march — the month
  15. march — the month
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. track — a path

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