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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. spring — of water
  3. foot — a measure
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. cap — a lid
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. band — a music group
  8. game — wild animals
  9. saw — the tool
  10. lie — to recline
  11. band — a ring
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. cap — a hat
  15. track — a song
  16. cap — of ice
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. track — a path
  19. game — a match
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. spring — the season
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. saw — the tool
  24. spring — a coil

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