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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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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: chest · patient · track · nail · perch · pitch · wind · key

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. key — in music
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. track — a path
  6. track — to keep track
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. chest — of your body
  10. pitch — completely
  11. wind — moving air
  12. key — for a lock
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. wind — moving air
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. chest — a box
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. key — the most important part
  20. chest — of your body
  21. perch — the fish
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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