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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. ground — the earth
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. ground — a position
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. bear — the animal
  9. cold — not warm
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rest — a break
  12. ground — crushed
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. rest — what's left
  15. cold — an illness
  16. scale — size or range
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. plane — a tool
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bear — the animal
  22. scale — in music
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. scale — for weighing

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