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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. season — of the year
  5. craft — a skill
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. craft — boats
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. spell — a short time
  12. season — in sport
  13. spell — magic
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. hand — help
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. spell — letters
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. hand — in cards
  24. safe — a strongbox

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