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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  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. pitcher — a jug
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. bound — certain
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. bound — tied together
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. row — a line
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. track — to keep track
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. game — a match
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. track — a path
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. foot — a measure
  17. bound — obliged
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. row — to paddle
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. game — wild animals
  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