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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. track — a path
  3. band — a music group
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. scale — in music
  6. branch — a division
  7. track — a song
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. band — a ring
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. cell — a phone
  16. track — to keep track
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. scale — size or range
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. cell — in biology

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