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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. mate — a partner
  3. lean — to bend
  4. saw — the tool
  5. bore — to drill
  6. track — to keep track
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. charge — electricity
  9. charge — in control
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. spring — the season
  12. saw — the tool
  13. bore — to tire
  14. spring — a coil
  15. degree — an amount
  16. spring — of water
  17. degree — temperature
  18. track — a song
  19. degree — from a university
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. mate — to breed
  22. charge — a price
  23. mate — a friend
  24. lean — thin

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