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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: press · dip · kid · track · lean · patient · roll · fan

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  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. track — a path
  2. lean — thin
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. track — to keep track
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. roll — a list
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. roll — a cake
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. press — to push
  14. track — a song
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. kid — to tease
  17. press — newspapers
  18. lean — to bend
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. dip — to sink
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. kid — child
  23. press — a publisher
  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