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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. tear — to rip
  3. bat — the animal
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. mark — a grade
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. field — a subject
  12. track — to keep track
  13. track — a path
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. field — for sport
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. key — in music
  19. mark — a trace
  20. field — farmland
  21. key — for a lock
  22. key — the most important part
  23. track — a song
  24. tear — from crying

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