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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: wake · track · fork · chest · hand · stand · rash · nail

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. track — a song
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. track — a path
  8. rash — a series
  9. chest — a box
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. fork — in a road
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. chest — of your body
  15. chest — of your body
  16. hand — help
  17. track — to keep track
  18. hand — in cards
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. rash — hasty
  24. wake — a trail

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