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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. track — a path
  7. foot — a measure
  8. band — a music group
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. fine — all right
  12. wake — a trail
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. track — a song
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. ground — the earth
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. plane — a tool
  20. ground — crushed
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. ground — a position
  23. band — a ring
  24. track — to keep track

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