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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. scale — size or range
  4. key — in music
  5. tear — from crying
  6. scale — in music
  7. tear — to rip
  8. track — a path
  9. tear — from crying
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. track — a song
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. chest — of your body
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. key — the most important part
  17. chest — of your body
  18. bulb — for light
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. cell — in biology
  21. key — for a lock
  22. chest — a box
  23. bulb — for light
  24. cell — a phone

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