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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 lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. mark — a trace
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. cold — an illness
  14. ball — a great time
  15. cold — not warm
  16. bat — the animal
  17. mark — a grade
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. bark — to shout
  22. ball — a dance
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. mark — to pay attention

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