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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. band — a music group
  4. ball — a dance
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. season — in sport
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. ball — a great time
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cold — an illness
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. season — of the year
  18. band — a ring

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