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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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. degree — an amount
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. press — to push
  5. saw — the tool
  6. degree — from a university
  7. degree — temperature
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tear — from crying
  11. mate — to breed
  12. press — newspapers
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. mate — a partner
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. tear — to rip
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. press — a publisher
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. mate — a friend
  23. saw — the tool
  24. nail — for a hammer

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