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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 124 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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. rest — what's left
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. chest — of your body
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. rest — what's left
  8. pit — a hole
  9. chest — a box
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. scale — size or range
  12. scale — in music
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. press — newspapers
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. pit — in a race
  18. chest — of your body
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. rest — a break
  22. press — a publisher
  23. press — to push
  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