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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: safe · bear · track · bat · land · pound · can · cold

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. cold — an illness
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. can — a tin
  5. land — to come down
  6. can — a tin
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. land — ground
  9. track — to keep track
  10. pound — a weight
  11. bear — the animal
  12. cold — not warm
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. track — a path
  16. bat — the animal
  17. can — to be able to
  18. land — a country
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. bear — the animal

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