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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. band — a music group
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. net — in sport
  5. tube — a container
  6. hand — help
  7. bulb — for light
  8. stock — goods
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. track — a song
  11. tube — the underground
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. stock — shares
  14. hand — in cards
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. net — after costs
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. bulb — for light
  20. net — for catching
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. track — a path
  23. band — a ring
  24. hand — part of the body

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