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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. mark — a grade
  3. track — a song
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. shower — to wash
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. content — happy
  8. cell — a phone
  9. mark — a trace
  10. ball — a great time
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. track — a path
  13. ball — a dance
  14. shower — rain
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. cell — in biology
  19. track — to keep track
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. kid — to tease
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. kid — child
  24. content — the amount

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