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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. current — electric
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. band — a music group
  5. cold — not warm
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. wound — an injury
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. bear — the animal
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. band — a ring
  13. current — of water
  14. wound — an injury
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. current — happening now
  17. foot — a measure
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. pass — a permit
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. cold — an illness

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