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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.

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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 · snap · tear · fall · pitcher · current

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. fall — to drop
  4. tear — from crying
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. track — a path
  7. track — to keep track
  8. snap — to click
  9. tear — to rip
  10. fall — the season
  11. current — electric
  12. current — of water
  13. track — a song
  14. current — happening now
  15. tear — from crying
  16. fall — to drop
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. pitcher — a jug

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