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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: chair · track · stick · wave · band · mark · row · pop

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  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. chair — a professorship
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. track — a path
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. mark — a trace
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. pop — soda
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. pop — to visit
  12. chair — a leader
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. band — a ring
  15. track — to keep track
  16. row — a line
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. band — a music group
  19. pop — music
  20. mark — a grade
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. track — a song
  23. wave — with your hand
  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