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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. bat — the animal
  3. date — the fruit
  4. club — for dancing
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. wound — an injury
  8. track — to keep track
  9. bulb — for light
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. fine — high quality
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. wound — an injury
  15. track — a song
  16. bulb — for light
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. track — a path
  19. club — for golf
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. club — a group
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. nail — for a hammer

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