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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. track — a path
  4. last — final
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. last — finally
  8. mine — for digging
  9. track — to keep track
  10. track — a song
  11. field — for sport
  12. row — a line
  13. firm — decided
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. firm — a company
  16. row — to paddle
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. firm — steady
  19. deal — to handle
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. field — farmland
  22. last — to go on
  23. field — a subject
  24. trunk — of a car

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