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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. roll — a cake
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. land — ground
  5. roll — a list
  6. land — to come down
  7. shower — rain
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. track — a path
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. shower — to wash
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. track — a song
  18. mine — for digging
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. land — a country
  21. track — to keep track
  22. foot — a measure
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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