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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  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. cabinet — ministers
  2. capital — money
  3. kick — in football
  4. roll — a cake
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rest — a break
  7. shower — to wash
  8. last — to go on
  9. capital — a city
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. roll — a list
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. rest — what's left
  18. last — final
  19. last — finally
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. shower — rain
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. capital — a big letter
  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