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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 120 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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  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. mate — a partner
  2. rash — a series
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. saw — the tool
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. rash — hasty
  7. mate — a friend
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. cold — an illness
  11. sharp — clever
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. mate — to breed
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. plane — a tool
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. cold — not warm
  22. saw — the tool
  23. arm — a part of something
  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