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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. bank — of a river
  3. track — to keep track
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. date — the fruit
  6. last — finally
  7. pitch — completely
  8. bank — for money
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. hand — in cards
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. bank — for money
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. deal — to handle
  17. stock — goods
  18. track — a path
  19. stock — shares
  20. last — to go on
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. track — a song
  23. last — final
  24. date — on the calendar

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