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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 120 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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: track · racket · bulb · mate · staff · row · land · capital

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. staff — a stick
  3. mate — to breed
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. land — ground
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. bulb — for light
  8. row — to paddle
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. track — a path
  11. row — a line
  12. land — a country
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. land — to come down
  16. bulb — for light
  17. capital — money
  18. track — a song
  19. mate — a friend
  20. capital — a city
  21. staff — employees
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. staff — employees
  24. track — to keep track

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