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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. track — a song
  3. present — the time now
  4. track — to keep track
  5. toast — bread
  6. mate — to breed
  7. cell — in biology
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. bore — to tire
  13. bore — to drill
  14. wound — an injury
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. present — a gift
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. mate — a partner
  19. wound — an injury
  20. mate — a friend
  21. present — there
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. cell — a phone
  24. bore — gave birth

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