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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. chest — of your body
  3. club — a group
  4. last — finally
  5. bulb — for light
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. track — a path
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. stock — goods
  10. club — for golf
  11. club — for dancing
  12. chest — of your body
  13. spring — of water
  14. chest — a box
  15. spring — the season
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. last — final
  18. spring — a coil
  19. stock — shares
  20. last — to go on
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. bulb — for light
  24. track — a song

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