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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. mark — a trace
  4. race — the arms race
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. capital — money
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. mark — a grade
  12. race — humankind
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. rush — hurry
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. capital — a city
  19. race — a contest
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. dip — to sink
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. dip — a sauce

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