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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: mark · plane · track · club · fall · nail · game · march

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. fall — the season
  4. fall — to drop
  5. track — a path
  6. track — a song
  7. march — the month
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. game — wild animals
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. plane — a tool
  12. club — a group
  13. game — a match
  14. fall — to drop
  15. club — for golf
  16. track — to keep track
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. march — the month
  19. mark — a grade
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. club — for dancing
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. mark — a trace
  24. march — music

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