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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. pound — a weight
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. cap — a lid
  7. wind — moving air
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. game — a match
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. bass — the fish
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. file — a document
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. cap — of ice
  17. game — wild animals
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. file — a tool
  21. file — a line of people
  22. bass — low music
  23. wind — moving air
  24. cap — a hat

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