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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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. wind — moving air
  3. fine — all right
  4. ground — crushed
  5. swing — to play on
  6. wind — moving air
  7. swing — music
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. bat — the animal
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. content — happy
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. ground — the earth
  19. fine — high quality
  20. content — the amount
  21. swing — in golf
  22. ground — a position
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. safe — out of danger

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