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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. roll — a cake
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. track — a path
  5. field — a subject
  6. kid — to tease
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. deal — to handle
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. rush — hurry
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. roll — a list
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. track — a song
  16. kid — child
  17. field — for sport
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. bulb — for light
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. field — farmland

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