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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. net — after costs
  3. track — a path
  4. scale — in music
  5. track — a song
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. net — in sport
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. clip — to cut
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. clip — for paper
  12. suit — in cards
  13. ball — a great time
  14. cap — a lid
  15. cap — a hat
  16. cap — of ice
  17. net — for catching
  18. mine — for digging
  19. ball — a dance
  20. suit — to fit
  21. suit — clothes
  22. track — to keep track
  23. scale — size or range
  24. clip — a video

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