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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. mate — a partner
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. track — a path
  7. capital — a city
  8. track — to keep track
  9. bulb — for light
  10. mate — to breed
  11. staff — employees
  12. capital — money
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. mine — for digging
  15. track — a song
  16. staff — employees
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. staff — a stick
  20. stock — shares
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. stock — goods
  24. mine — an explosive

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