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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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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: swing · track · fall · last · spell · press · chest · mark

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. mark — a trace
  3. press — a publisher
  4. chest — a box
  5. mark — a grade
  6. spell — magic
  7. last — final
  8. press — newspapers
  9. last — to go on
  10. press — to push
  11. chest — of your body
  12. swing — to play on
  13. spell — a short time
  14. last — finally
  15. swing — in golf
  16. fall — the season
  17. swing — music
  18. fall — to drop
  19. track — a song
  20. fall — to drop
  21. chest — of your body
  22. spell — letters
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. track — to keep track

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