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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. season — of the year
  3. mug — a cup
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. pit — in a race
  6. mug — to rob
  7. fine — all right
  8. content — happy
  9. mug — a face
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. land — ground
  12. pit — a hole
  13. mate — a partner
  14. mate — a friend
  15. content — the amount
  16. season — in sport
  17. track — to keep track
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. fine — high quality
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. land — a country
  22. track — a song
  23. land — to come down
  24. mate — to breed

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