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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: rock · track · lash · hand · court · rule · mine · patient

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. court — for sport
  3. rule — government
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. rule — a law
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. court — of a king
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. track — to keep track
  11. track — a path
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. court — of law
  15. hand — in cards
  16. rock — music
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. mine — for digging
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. rock — a stone
  22. hand — help
  23. track — a song
  24. mine — an explosive

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