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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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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: leaves · content · cell · band · ball · pit · track · row

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. ball — a great time
  3. content — happy
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. ball — a dance
  6. row — a line
  7. track — a path
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. pit — a hole
  10. band — a ring
  11. track — a song
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. content — the amount
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. band — a music group
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. cell — in biology
  19. row — to paddle
  20. pit — in a race
  21. cell — a phone
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. leaves — of a tree
  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