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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. rock — music
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. track — a song
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. fine — all right
  8. kid — to tease
  9. kid — child
  10. mate — a friend
  11. fine — high quality
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. foot — a measure
  18. branch — a division
  19. mate — a partner
  20. track — to keep track
  21. mate — to breed
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. rock — a stone

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