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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. fine — all right
  3. clip — a video
  4. file — a tool
  5. clip — for paper
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. object — a thing
  8. can — a tin
  9. rash — hasty
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. chip — to eat
  13. object — to protest
  14. file — a line of people
  15. can — to be able to
  16. file — a document
  17. can — a tin
  18. fine — high quality
  19. object — an aim
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rash — a series
  22. chip — for betting
  23. clip — to cut
  24. chip — in a computer

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