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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: patient · bark · hide · track · cold · press · wake · ruler

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. track — to keep track
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. track — a path
  5. press — to push
  6. wake — a trail
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. track — a song
  9. press — newspapers
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. cold — an illness
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. press — a publisher
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. bark — to shout
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. cold — not warm
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. bark — of a tree

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