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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. spell — magic
  3. race — a contest
  4. spell — a short time
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. chest — a box
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. pitch — completely
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. bat — the animal
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. lie — to recline
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. race — humankind
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. race — the arms race
  20. spell — letters
  21. chest — of your body
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. chest — of your body

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