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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. game — a match
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. kick — in football
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. staff — employees
  10. rush — hurry
  11. pop — soda
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. row — a line
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. game — wild animals
  16. staff — employees
  17. staff — a stick
  18. wake — a trail
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. pop — to visit
  21. pop — music
  22. row — to paddle
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. row — a quarrel

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