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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. shower — to wash
  3. track — a path
  4. net — after costs
  5. land — a country
  6. row — to paddle
  7. net — in sport
  8. band — a music group
  9. land — ground
  10. shower — rain
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. track — a song
  14. land — to come down
  15. net — for catching
  16. track — to keep track
  17. band — a ring
  18. row — a line

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