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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. scale — size or range
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. content — happy
  5. track — a song
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. content — the amount
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. track — a path
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. mine — for digging
  15. track — to keep track
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. wake — a trail
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. ball — a dance
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. rule — government
  22. ball — a great time
  23. rule — a law
  24. patient — a sick person

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