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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. spring — a coil
  4. track — to keep track
  5. spring — of water
  6. spring — the season
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mine — for digging
  9. track — a song
  10. deal — to handle
  11. pop — music
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. cold — an illness
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. firm — decided
  16. pop — soda
  17. pop — to visit
  18. track — a path
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. wake — a trail
  21. firm — a company
  22. firm — steady
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  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