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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 124 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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  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. track — to keep track
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. band — a ring
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. band — a music group
  6. date — the fruit
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. mine — for digging
  11. degree — an amount
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. bear — the animal
  14. track — a song
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. degree — temperature
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. degree — from a university
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. bear — the animal
  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