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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. last — final
  3. bore — to tire
  4. snap — to click
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. chair — a leader
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. spring — the season
  10. spring — of water
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. rush — hurry
  17. last — finally
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. wake — a trail
  21. spring — a coil
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. last — to go on
  24. bore — to drill

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