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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. last — final
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. file — a document
  7. last — finally
  8. last — to go on
  9. mine — for digging
  10. court — of a king
  11. court — for sport
  12. present — a gift
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. court — of law
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. file — a tool
  20. file — a line of people
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. present — there
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. fan — a supporter

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