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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. spring — of water
  5. spring — a coil
  6. net — after costs
  7. track — a song
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. sharp — clever
  10. net — in sport
  11. spring — the season
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. net — for catching
  14. stand — to bear
  15. track — a path
  16. track — to keep track
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. date — the fruit
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. land — ground
  22. land — a country
  23. land — to come down
  24. racket — for tennis

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