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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 116 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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. fall — the season
  3. bank — for money
  4. bulb — for light
  5. field — a subject
  6. field — for sport
  7. mate — a partner
  8. fall — to drop
  9. cold — an illness
  10. mate — a friend
  11. dip — to sink
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. track — to keep track
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bank — of a river
  16. bulb — for light
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. fall — to drop
  20. bank — for money
  21. field — farmland
  22. track — a song
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. track — a path

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