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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 116 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 hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. lean — thin
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. dip — to sink
  7. race — a contest
  8. track — to keep track
  9. lean — to bend
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. land — a country
  12. land — to come down
  13. track — a song
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. race — humankind
  16. race — the arms race
  17. land — ground
  18. wind — moving air
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. track — a path
  22. wind — moving air
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. mark — a grade

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