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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. file — a line of people
  10. firm — steady
  11. foot — a measure
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. firm — decided
  14. pound — a weight
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. cold — an illness
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. file — a document
  21. file — a tool
  22. cold — not warm
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. pound — for dogs

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