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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. saw — the tool
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. rock — music
  6. cold — an illness
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — moving air
  9. mug — a cup
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. date — the fruit
  12. mug — a face
  13. bulb — for light
  14. mug — to rob
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. rock — a stone
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. bulb — for light
  20. saw — the tool
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. cold — not warm
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. date — on the calendar

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