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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. march — the month
  3. track — a path
  4. toast — bread
  5. game — wild animals
  6. track — a song
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. spring — a coil
  9. spring — of water
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. band — a music group
  12. track — to keep track
  13. bear — the animal
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. march — the month
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. net — for catching
  18. march — music
  19. game — a match
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. band — a ring
  22. net — after costs
  23. net — in sport
  24. spring — the season

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