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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: row · track · mark · ball · cell · wake · tear · fall

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. track — a song
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. cell — a phone
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. row — to paddle
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. fall — the season
  9. tear — to rip
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. track — to keep track
  13. track — a path
  14. ball — a great time
  15. cell — in biology
  16. row — a line
  17. ball — a dance
  18. fall — to drop
  19. tear — from crying
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. fall — to drop
  22. wake — a trail
  23. mark — a trace
  24. mark — a grade

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