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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. track — to keep track
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. club — for golf
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. bulb — for light
  9. field — farmland
  10. degree — from a university
  11. field — for sport
  12. degree — an amount
  13. saw — the tool
  14. rock — music
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. rock — a stone
  18. saw — the tool
  19. club — for dancing
  20. field — a subject
  21. degree — temperature
  22. track — a path
  23. club — a group
  24. bulb — for light

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