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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: dip · date · swing · track · drill · mug · bear · row

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. bear — the animal
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. date — the fruit
  6. swing — to play on
  7. dip — to sink
  8. swing — music
  9. row — a line
  10. mug — a face
  11. track — to keep track
  12. drill — a practice
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. drill — the tool
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. track — a song
  17. bear — the animal
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. swing — in golf
  21. drill — army training
  22. mug — to rob
  23. mug — a cup
  24. row — to paddle

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