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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 120 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: track · present · face · hand · patient · wake · saw · drill

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. face — to confront
  3. hand — help
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. track — a path
  7. present — there
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. hand — in cards
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. face — to point toward
  13. present — the time now
  14. drill — a practice
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. saw — the tool
  17. drill — the tool
  18. present — a gift
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. wake — a trail
  21. face — part of the head
  22. drill — army training
  23. track — a song
  24. track — to keep track

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