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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. wind — moving air
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bass — the fish
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. chest — a box
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. chair — a leader
  13. saw — the tool
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. bore — to drill
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. bass — low music
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. chest — of your body
  23. bore — to tire
  24. chair — a professorship

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