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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 120 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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. track — a song
  3. band — a ring
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. mate — a friend
  6. track — to keep track
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. band — a music group
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. lie — to recline
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. cell — a phone
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. track — a path
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. mate — a partner
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. mine — for digging
  22. cell — in biology
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mouse — the animal

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