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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. fine — high quality
  3. squash — to crush
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — a box
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. net — for catching
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. rule — government
  12. fine — all right
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. rule — a law
  15. fork — in a road
  16. net — after costs
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. chest — of your body
  23. pitch — completely
  24. net — in sport

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