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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. track — to keep track
  4. ground — the earth
  5. track — a path
  6. rule — a law
  7. spell — a short time
  8. stand — to bear
  9. ground — crushed
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. spell — magic
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. spell — letters
  15. mate — to breed
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. bat — the animal
  18. ground — a position
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. mate — a friend
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. track — a song
  24. rule — government

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