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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: track · fall · saw · foot · mine · date · bulb · march

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. track — a song
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. saw — the tool
  5. date — the fruit
  6. march — music
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. fall — the season
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. foot — a measure
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. fall — to drop
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. bulb — for light
  15. fall — to drop
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. march — the month
  18. track — to keep track
  19. mine — for digging
  20. march — the month
  21. saw — the tool
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. bulb — for light
  24. track — a path

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