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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: can · swing · bear · track · land · patient · net · ball

  1. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. ball — a dance
  4. bear — the animal
  5. swing — to play on
  6. land — a country
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. land — ground
  9. swing — in golf
  10. ball — a great time
  11. can — a tin
  12. swing — music
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. can — to be able to
  16. track — a path
  17. track — a song
  18. net — for catching
  19. net — in sport
  20. net — after costs
  21. land — to come down
  22. bear — the animal
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. track — to keep track

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