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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: wound · track · patient · fine · calf · roll · object · degree

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. degree — from a university
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wound — an injury
  7. track — a song
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. degree — temperature
  11. degree — an amount
  12. fine — all right
  13. roll — a list
  14. object — an aim
  15. object — a thing
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. track — to keep track
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. fine — high quality
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. roll — a cake
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. track — a path

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