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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. mate — to breed
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. wake — a trail
  9. track — a song
  10. mate — a partner
  11. bulb — for light
  12. mine — for digging
  13. bulb — for light
  14. track — to keep track
  15. fine — high quality
  16. capital — money
  17. mate — a friend
  18. pop — to visit
  19. fine — all right
  20. capital — a city
  21. pop — music
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. pop — soda
  24. mine — belonging to me

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