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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. cap — a hat
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. saw — the tool
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. season — in sport
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. saw — the tool
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. cap — of ice
  18. cap — a lid
  19. hand — in cards
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. perch — the fish
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. season — of the year
  24. perch — for a bird

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