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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. club — for dancing
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. land — to come down
  5. mate — a friend
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. club — for golf
  8. mate — a partner
  9. degree — temperature
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. degree — an amount
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. rock — music
  14. mate — to breed
  15. rock — a stone
  16. club — a group
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. track — a song
  19. track — a path
  20. degree — from a university
  21. land — ground
  22. dip — to sink
  23. land — a country
  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