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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. game — wild animals
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. game — a match
  5. press — to push
  6. chip — for betting
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. press — a publisher
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. chip — to eat
  12. land — a country
  13. press — newspapers
  14. dip — to sink
  15. land — to come down
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. land — ground
  18. patient — a sick person

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