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

Word bank: tear · net · cue · lie · foot · track · club · wave

  1. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. net — after costs
  3. cue — a hint
  4. club — for golf
  5. cue — a signal
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. track — a song
  8. track — to keep track
  9. track — a path
  10. lie — to recline
  11. club — for dancing
  12. foot — a measure
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. cue — for pool
  15. tear — from crying
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying
  19. net — in sport
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. net — for catching
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. club — a 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