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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. track — to keep track
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. date — the fruit
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. track — a path
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. season — in sport
  13. season — of the year
  14. rash — hasty
  15. bulb — for light
  16. track — a song
  17. fine — all right
  18. rash — a series
  19. mine — for digging
  20. fine — high quality
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. mine — an explosive

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