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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 ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. hand — help
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. hand — in cards
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. track — to keep track
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. track — a song
  14. chip — for betting
  15. snap — to click
  16. chip — to eat
  17. mine — for digging
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. wake — a trail
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. track — a path
  24. straw — dry grass

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