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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 124 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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. cold — not warm
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. plane — a tool
  7. chest — a box
  8. mine — for digging
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. chest — of your body
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. tube — the underground
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cold — an illness
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. tube — a container
  23. chest — of your body
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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