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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. chest — of your body
  3. capital — a city
  4. rest — what's left
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. track — a path
  7. track — to keep track
  8. chest — of your body
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. rest — what's left
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. chest — a box
  13. stock — goods
  14. root — the cause
  15. track — a song
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. root — of a plant
  18. root — of a word
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. stock — shares
  21. capital — money
  22. rest — a break
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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