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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. face — to confront
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. cold — an illness
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. charge — electricity
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. charge — a price
  14. hand — in cards
  15. bore — to drill
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. face — to point toward
  18. charge — in control
  19. lean — thin
  20. lean — to bend
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. hand — help
  23. face — part of the head
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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