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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 water is too ________________.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. pound — a weight
  4. track — a path
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. track — to keep track
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. track — a song
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. saw — the tool
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. cold — an illness
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. stem — to come from
  23. saw — the tool
  24. hide — to keep secret

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