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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: bark · spring · track · file · ball · rest · mouse · rock

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. rock — a stone
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. rock — music
  8. rest — what's left
  9. track — a song
  10. track — to keep track
  11. ball — a dance
  12. spring — a coil
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. file — a line of people
  15. file — a tool
  16. bark — to shout
  17. file — a document
  18. spring — of water
  19. rest — what's left
  20. spring — the season
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. ball — a great time
  24. 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