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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. band — a music group
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. spring — the season
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. fall — the season
  8. spell — magic
  9. band — a ring
  10. spring — of water
  11. track — a path
  12. spell — a short time
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fall — to drop
  16. current — electric
  17. bore — to drill
  18. current — of water
  19. spell — letters
  20. date — the fruit
  21. bore — to tire
  22. spring — a coil
  23. track — a song
  24. current — happening now

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