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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. court — for sport
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. track — a song
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. tube — a container
  7. mine — for digging
  8. tube — the underground
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. court — of law
  11. track — a path
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. bore — to tire
  14. mark — a trace
  15. track — to keep track
  16. kid — child
  17. court — of a king
  18. kid — to tease
  19. field — a subject
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. bore — to drill
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — farmland

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