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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. content — the amount
  4. land — ground
  5. land — a country
  6. track — to keep track
  7. mate — to breed
  8. fork — in a road
  9. mine — for digging
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. board — to get on
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. vault — a safe
  14. mate — a friend
  15. track — a song
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. mate — a partner
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. board — a committee
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. land — to come down
  24. content — happy

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