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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. land — ground
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. land — a country
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. board — to get on
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. land — to come down
  14. mug — a face
  15. mug — a cup
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. season — of the year
  19. season — in sport
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. board — a committee
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. board — a flat piece

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