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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 116 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: rest · ball · track · bat · patient · deal · land · can

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. land — to come down
  3. track — a path
  4. ball — a dance
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. land — ground
  7. land — a country
  8. bat — the animal
  9. track — a song
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. deal — to handle
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rest — a break
  14. rest — what's left
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. can — a tin
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. ball — a great time
  21. can — to be able to
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. can — a tin

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