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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 lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. snap — to click
  3. fine — all right
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. row — a line
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. bank — of a river
  10. chip — to eat
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. fine — high quality
  13. bank — for money
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. bank — for money
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. chip — for betting
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. chest — of your body
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. row — to paddle

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