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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: rush · chair · mouse · pop · lie · cold · roll · track

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. pop — music
  5. track — to keep track
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. cold — not warm
  8. chair — a leader
  9. rush — hurry
  10. pop — to visit
  11. lie — to recline
  12. cold — an illness
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. roll — a cake
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. track — a song
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. pop — soda
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. roll — a list

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