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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. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. land — a country
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. fork — in a road
  8. row — to paddle
  9. fall — the season
  10. fall — to drop
  11. row — a line
  12. dip — to sink
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. land — ground
  16. track — a path
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. rush — hurry
  20. fall — to drop
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. track — a song
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. land — to come down

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