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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. track — to keep track
  6. drill — a practice
  7. lie — to recline
  8. mine — for digging
  9. bass — the fish
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. bass — low music
  12. dip — to sink
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. track — a song
  15. track — a path
  16. drill — army training
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. wake — a trail
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. band — a ring
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. band — a music group
  24. drill — the tool

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