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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. sharp — clever
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. track — to keep track
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. last — to go on
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. drill — army training
  11. wake — a trail
  12. track — a song
  13. file — a line of people
  14. last — final
  15. file — a document
  16. track — a path
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. file — a tool
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. drill — the tool
  21. vault — a safe
  22. last — finally
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. drill — a practice

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