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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 newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. track — a path
  4. wax — to grow
  5. track — to keep track
  6. foot — a measure
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. pit — a hole
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. pound — a weight
  12. mine — for digging
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. capital — a city
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. capital — money
  21. pit — in a race
  22. track — a song
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. mine — an explosive

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