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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. track — a path
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. date — the fruit
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. track — a song
  8. fine — all right
  9. track — to keep track
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. deal — to handle
  12. fine — high quality
  13. clip — to cut
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. pitch — completely
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. land — a country
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. clip — for paper
  23. clip — a video
  24. land — to come down

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