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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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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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. cold — an illness
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. cold — not warm
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. snap — to click
  8. sharp — clever
  9. staff — employees
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. rush — hurry
  12. mine — for digging
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. chair — a leader
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. staff — employees
  17. staff — a stick
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. chair — to sit on

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