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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. cap — of ice
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. cap — a lid
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. track — to keep track
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. wind — moving air
  12. cap — a hat
  13. track — a song
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. dip — to sink
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. bass — low music
  19. fork — in a road
  20. bass — the fish
  21. wind — moving air
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. patient — a sick person

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