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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  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. track — a path
  2. staff — employees
  3. field — for sport
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. field — a subject
  8. field — farmland
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. content — happy
  12. staff — a stick
  13. ball — a dance
  14. track — a song
  15. staff — employees
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. fall — to drop
  18. bark — to shout
  19. fall — the season
  20. content — the amount
  21. ball — a great time
  22. fall — to drop
  23. track — to keep track
  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