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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  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. cold — the Cold War
  2. cold — an illness
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. key — in music
  5. club — for golf
  6. bound — certain
  7. season — of the year
  8. bat — the animal
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. season — in sport
  12. bound — tied together
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bound — obliged
  16. club — a group
  17. key — for a lock
  18. ground — a position
  19. key — the most important part
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. ground — crushed
  22. club — for dancing
  23. ground — the earth
  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