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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. fine — high quality
  3. pop — to visit
  4. spring — a coil
  5. pop — soda
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. bat — the animal
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. fine — all right
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. date — the fruit
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. track — a song
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. track — to keep track
  19. pitch — completely
  20. dip — to sink
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. spring — the season
  23. track — a path
  24. spring — of water

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