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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 116 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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. track — to keep track
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. bulb — for light
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. track — a path
  7. rule — government
  8. rule — a law
  9. tear — from crying
  10. net — for catching
  11. last — to go on
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. net — in sport
  14. net — after costs
  15. bulb — for light
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. last — final
  18. last — finally
  19. tear — from crying
  20. band — a music group
  21. tear — to rip
  22. band — a ring
  23. track — a song
  24. pound — to hit hard

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