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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. fall — to drop
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. face — part of the head
  6. clip — to cut
  7. face — to confront
  8. fall — the season
  9. bank — for money
  10. bank — for money
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. bank — of a river
  14. face — to point toward
  15. can — a tin
  16. fall — to drop
  17. chip — for betting
  18. clip — a video
  19. chip — to eat
  20. clip — for paper
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. can — to be able to
  23. can — a tin
  24. patient — a sick person

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