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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. track — a path
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. game — wild animals
  5. land — ground
  6. game — a match
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. rash — a series
  9. bore — to drill
  10. fine — all right
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. prune — to trim
  13. track — a song
  14. bore — to tire
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. track — to keep track
  17. fine — high quality
  18. prune — to trim
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. land — a country
  21. rash — hasty
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. kid — child
  24. kid — to tease

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