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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 116 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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. tube — the underground
  3. track — a song
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. tube — a container
  7. track — a path
  8. season — in sport
  9. court — of a king
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. wake — a trail
  12. stem — to come from
  13. mine — for digging
  14. court — for sport
  15. season — of the year
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. court — of law
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. pass — a permit
  23. track — to keep track
  24. pass — to succeed

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