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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. saw — the tool
  4. cold — not warm
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. cell — a phone
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. cold — an illness
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. cell — in biology
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. ball — a dance
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. ball — a great time
  18. patient — calm and waiting

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