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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. rush — hurry
  4. drill — the tool
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. rash — a series
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. drill — a practice
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. present — there
  13. present — the time now
  14. rash — hasty
  15. snap — to click
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. chair — a leader
  22. present — a gift
  23. drill — army training
  24. patient — a sick person

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