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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 120 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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. craft — boats
  4. craft — a skill
  5. fall — the season
  6. fall — to drop
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. pit — in a race
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. chair — a leader
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. chest — of your body
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. scale — in music
  16. fall — to drop
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. chest — a box
  21. chest — of your body
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. scale — size or range

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