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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. chest — of your body
  4. drill — a practice
  5. drill — the tool
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. race — humankind
  8. chest — a box
  9. spell — a short time
  10. game — wild animals
  11. race — a contest
  12. game — a match
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. drill — army training
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. chest — of your body
  19. spell — magic
  20. pitch — completely
  21. race — the arms race
  22. spell — letters
  23. saw — the tool
  24. game — a kind of play

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