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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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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. object — to protest
  4. track — a path
  5. last — to go on
  6. pop — to visit
  7. hand — in cards
  8. band — a ring
  9. last — final
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. track — to keep track
  12. band — a music group
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. object — an aim
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. hand — help
  18. foot — a measure
  19. pop — music
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. last — finally
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. object — a thing
  24. pop — soda

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