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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. rest — what's left
  3. track — to keep track
  4. land — a country
  5. bank — of a river
  6. rest — a break
  7. rest — what's left
  8. tube — a container
  9. bank — for money
  10. bat — the animal
  11. track — a song
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. land — to come down
  15. tube — the underground
  16. cell — a phone
  17. bank — for money
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. land — ground
  21. cell — in biology
  22. bear — the animal
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. cell — in a prison

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