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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 120 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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fine — high quality
  4. fine — all right
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. cap — a lid
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. track — to keep track
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. mate — a partner
  12. snap — to click
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. mine — for digging
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. cap — of ice
  18. capital — money
  19. capital — a city
  20. track — a song
  21. mate — a friend
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. cap — a hat
  24. mate — to breed

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