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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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. row — to paddle
  7. saw — the tool
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. drill — a practice
  10. capital — a city
  11. row — a line
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. drill — the tool
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. capital — money
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. chair — a leader
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. saw — the tool

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