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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. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. saw — the tool
  5. cold — not warm
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. degree — from a university
  10. cold — an illness
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. degree — temperature
  14. clip — to cut
  15. clip — for paper
  16. saw — the tool
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. clip — a video
  19. bear — the animal
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. bear — the animal
  22. degree — an amount
  23. pass — a permit
  24. cabinet — ministers

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