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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. pitch — completely
  3. wind — moving air
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. plane — a tool
  6. hand — in cards
  7. key — the most important part
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. rule — a law
  12. rule — government
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. key — for a lock
  18. key — in music
  19. hand — help
  20. pit — in a race
  21. pit — a hole
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. pitch — a sports field

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