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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 120 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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. track — a song
  3. rock — music
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. cold — not warm
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. lean — to bend
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. sharp — clever
  16. cold — an illness
  17. track — a path
  18. rock — a stone
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. track — to keep track
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. cold — the Cold War

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