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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. date — the fruit
  3. present — the time now
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. bound — obliged
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. degree — from a university
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. bound — certain
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. mate — a friend
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. bound — tied together
  15. mate — a partner
  16. field — a subject
  17. present — there
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. field — farmland
  20. present — a gift
  21. mate — to breed
  22. field — for sport
  23. degree — an amount
  24. degree — temperature

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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