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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. hand — in cards
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. mate — a friend
  7. drill — army training
  8. dip — to sink
  9. mate — a partner
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. drill — a practice
  12. drill — the tool
  13. wind — moving air
  14. mate — to breed
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. fork — in a road
  17. lie — to recline
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. wind — moving air
  20. hand — help
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. lie — an untruth

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