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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. track — a path
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. net — in sport
  6. mate — a friend
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — what's left
  10. cold — not warm
  11. mate — to breed
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. rest — a break
  14. track — to keep track
  15. cold — an illness
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. mate — a partner
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. net — after costs
  20. prune — to trim
  21. net — for catching
  22. prune — to trim
  23. board — a committee
  24. board — to get on

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