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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. press — newspapers
  7. hand — help
  8. press — to push
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. fall — to drop
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. kid — child
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. cold — an illness
  18. cold — not warm
  19. kid — to tease
  20. press — a publisher
  21. fall — to drop
  22. hand — in cards
  23. tube — the underground
  24. tube — a container

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