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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. track — a song
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. club — for dancing
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. mine — for digging
  9. pitch — completely
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. date — the fruit
  12. row — a line
  13. root — of a plant
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. root — the cause
  16. club — a group
  17. root — of a word
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. club — for golf
  20. track — to keep track
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. row — to paddle
  24. row — a quarrel

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