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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tube · fine · chip · hand · ground · patient · wound · track

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. ground — crushed
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. hand — help
  5. wound — an injury
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. ground — a position
  10. track — to keep track
  11. chip — for betting
  12. fine — all right
  13. ground — the earth
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. hand — in cards
  16. tube — a container
  17. track — a song
  18. wound — an injury
  19. chip — to eat
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. tube — the underground
  24. track — a path

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