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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. snap — to click
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. cap — a lid
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. cap — of ice
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. bear — the animal
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. last — final
  17. last — to go on
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wound — an injury
  22. last — finally
  23. bear — the animal
  24. cap — a hat

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