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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. hand — in cards
  3. present — a gift
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. hand — help
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. perch — the fish
  8. present — there
  9. lean — thin
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. present — the time now
  12. lean — to bend
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. squash — to crush
  16. bat — the animal
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. toast — bread
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. squash — the sport
  24. lean — to rest against

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