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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 116 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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. last — finally
  3. file — a line of people
  4. track — a song
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. club — for golf
  7. wake — a trail
  8. track — to keep track
  9. sharp — clever
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. last — to go on
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. file — a tool
  15. file — a document
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. last — final
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. bat — the animal
  20. club — a group
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. club — for dancing
  23. track — a path
  24. sharp — with an edge

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