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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 is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. staff — employees
  4. clip — for paper
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. lean — to bend
  7. pop — music
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. tube — a container
  13. tube — the underground
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. pop — to visit
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. staff — a stick
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. pop — soda
  21. branch — a division
  22. clip — a video
  23. staff — employees
  24. clip — to cut

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