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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: track · lean · rash · shower · wake · bass · cold · date

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. wake — a trail
  4. lean — to bend
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. track — a song
  9. rash — hasty
  10. track — to keep track
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. cold — not warm
  13. bass — the fish
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. lean — thin
  17. shower — rain
  18. track — a path
  19. shower — to wash
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. date — the fruit
  22. bass — low music
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. cold — an illness

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