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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. row — a line
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. chip — to eat
  8. last — to go on
  9. can — a tin
  10. can — to be able to
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. last — finally
  13. row — to paddle
  14. rush — hurry
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. chip — for betting
  17. can — a tin
  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