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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. track — to keep track
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. track — a path
  5. spring — a coil
  6. spring — the season
  7. roll — a cake
  8. pit — a hole
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. spring — of water
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. track — a song
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. pit — in a race
  15. ground — crushed
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. pass — a permit
  20. ground — the earth
  21. roll — a list
  22. content — happy
  23. content — the amount
  24. roll — on a roll

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