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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. shower — rain
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. degree — from a university
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. kid — to tease
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. staff — employees
  11. staff — a stick
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. staff — employees
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. degree — temperature
  19. shower — to wash
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. kid — child
  22. degree — an amount
  23. dip — to sink
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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