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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. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. cold — an illness
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. kid — child
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. stock — goods
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. rush — hurry
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. tube — a container
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. kid — to tease
  19. stock — shares
  20. cold — not warm
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. kick — in football
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. tube — the underground

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