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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 116 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. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. prune — to trim
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. branch — a division
  9. wind — moving air
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. bat — the animal
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. wind — moving air
  17. prune — to trim
  18. branch — of a tree

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