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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. land — ground
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. bulb — for light
  5. track — a path
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. mate — a friend
  8. swing — in golf
  9. bulb — for light
  10. bound — obliged
  11. land — to come down
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. track — a song
  14. mate — a partner
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. mine — for digging
  17. land — a country
  18. swing — music
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. swing — to play on
  21. track — to keep track
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. bound — certain
  24. bound — tied together

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