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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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Word bank
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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 ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. hand — help
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. pass — a permit
  7. craft — a skill
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. file — a tool
  10. ball — a dance
  11. file — a document
  12. mine — for digging
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. ball — a great time
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. hand — in cards
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. craft — boats
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. file — a line of people

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