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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. kid — to tease
  4. track — to keep track
  5. mine — for digging
  6. kid — child
  7. drill — the tool
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. drill — a practice
  11. drill — army training
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cold — an illness
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. charge — in control
  17. track — a path
  18. pitch — completely
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. charge — a price
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. charge — electricity
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. cold — not warm

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