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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 120 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: last · track · band · lean · suit · tear · scale · ball

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. track — to keep track
  3. band — a ring
  4. suit — in cards
  5. suit — to fit
  6. last — final
  7. tear — to rip
  8. lean — thin
  9. track — a song
  10. last — finally
  11. band — a music group
  12. tear — from crying
  13. ball — a dance
  14. suit — clothes
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. scale — in music
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. tear — from crying
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. track — a path
  21. scale — size or range
  22. ball — a great time
  23. last — to go on
  24. lean — to bend

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