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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. pound — a weight
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. bound — certain
  6. track — a song
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. mate — a friend
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. spring — of water
  11. track — to keep track
  12. spring — a coil
  13. land — a country
  14. land — ground
  15. scale — in music
  16. track — a path
  17. mate — to breed
  18. spring — the season
  19. mate — a partner
  20. scale — size or range
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. land — to come down
  23. bound — tied together
  24. bound — obliged

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