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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. tear — to rip
  6. present — the time now
  7. present — there
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. capital — money
  10. kid — to tease
  11. rash — hasty
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. present — a gift
  15. capital — a city
  16. kid — child
  17. rash — a series
  18. tear — from crying
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. tear — from crying
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. wave — with your hand

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