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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. track — a path
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. kid — child
  8. kid — to tease
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. track — to keep track
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. rock — music
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. bat — the animal
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. rock — a stone
  23. bear — the animal
  24. track — a song

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