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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. squash — to crush
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. mark — a grade
  5. current — of water
  6. bore — to tire
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. bore — to drill
  9. can — to be able to
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. cold — not warm
  12. squash — the sport
  13. mark — a trace
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. can — a tin
  16. fall — to drop
  17. current — happening now
  18. current — electric
  19. fall — the season
  20. can — a tin
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. fall — to drop
  24. cold — an illness

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