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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: bat · track · cold · mug · patient · march · lie · game

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. cold — not warm
  6. track — a path
  7. bat — the animal
  8. mug — a cup
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. track — a song
  11. cold — an illness
  12. game — wild animals
  13. game — a match
  14. mug — to rob
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. march — music
  17. march — the month
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. lie — to recline
  20. march — the month
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. track — to keep track
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. mug — a face

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