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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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Word bank
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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. land — ground
  3. spell — a short time
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. rash — hasty
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. band — a music group
  10. mark — a grade
  11. land — a country
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. band — a ring
  14. land — to come down
  15. rash — a series
  16. track — a song
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. mark — a trace
  19. track — a path
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. spell — magic
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. track — to keep track
  24. patient — a sick person

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