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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 ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. fall — the season
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. cold — not warm
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a match
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. last — final
  14. plane — a tool
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. last — to go on
  17. last — finally
  18. cold — an illness
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. fall — to drop
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. fall — to drop

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