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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: cold · mark · bass · patient · track · chest · pit · jam

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. chest — a box
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. pit — in a race
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. chest — of your body
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. bass — low music
  11. track — to keep track
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. track — a path
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. mark — a grade
  17. pit — a hole
  18. track — a song
  19. chest — of your body
  20. cold — not warm
  21. mark — a trace
  22. cold — an illness
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. bass — the instrument

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