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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. fine — all right
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. mate — a friend
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. staff — a stick
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. mate — to breed
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. root — of a plant
  11. fine — high quality
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. track — a path
  15. rule — government
  16. mate — a partner
  17. cold — an illness
  18. root — the cause
  19. track — to keep track
  20. root — of a word
  21. rule — a law
  22. staff — employees
  23. staff — employees
  24. cold — not warm

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