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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. kid — to tease
  3. key — in music
  4. key — the most important part
  5. bass — low music
  6. date — the fruit
  7. land — to come down
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. bass — the fish
  11. dip — to sink
  12. land — ground
  13. track — a song
  14. key — for a lock
  15. land — a country
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. kid — child
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. game — a match
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. game — wild animals
  24. track — to keep track

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