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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. spring — of water
  3. track — a song
  4. pound — a weight
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. cell — in biology
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. track — to keep track
  9. race — humankind
  10. row — a line
  11. race — a contest
  12. dip — to sink
  13. track — a path
  14. can — to be able to
  15. race — the arms race
  16. spring — the season
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. cell — a phone
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. row — to paddle
  23. can — a tin
  24. spring — a coil

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