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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. march — music
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. saw — the tool
  6. stand — to bear
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. march — the month
  9. chair — a leader
  10. march — the month
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. land — to come down
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. land — ground
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. mine — for digging
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. land — a country

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