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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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. face — to point toward
  4. fine — all right
  5. fine — high quality
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. tear — from crying
  8. scale — size or range
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. row — a line
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. tear — to rip
  14. scale — in music
  15. face — part of the head
  16. bat — the animal
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. face — to confront
  19. tear — from crying
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. row — to paddle
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. patient — a sick person

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