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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. wind — moving air
  6. land — to come down
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. land — a country
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. ground — a position
  11. wind — moving air
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. cell — in biology
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bass — low music
  19. land — ground
  20. ground — the earth
  21. bass — the fish
  22. cell — a phone
  23. bear — the animal
  24. wind — to turn a key

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