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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  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. cabinet — ministers
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. roll — a list
  4. shower — to wash
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. bear — the animal
  7. drill — a practice
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. drill — army training
  11. court — of a king
  12. squash — to crush
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. court — for sport
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. squash — the sport
  18. bear — the animal
  19. court — of law
  20. drill — the tool
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. roll — a cake
  23. shower — rain
  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