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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. track — a path
  3. track — a song
  4. toast — bread
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. rush — hurry
  10. hand — in cards
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. season — of the year
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. hand — help
  18. net — in sport
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. net — for catching
  21. pound — a weight
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. net — after costs
  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