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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. shower — to wash
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. last — finally
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. shower — rain
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. swing — in golf
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. swing — to play on
  19. swing — music
  20. last — to go on
  21. last — final
  22. stem — to come from
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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