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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 water is too ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. lean — thin
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. net — in sport
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. lean — to bend
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. cold — an illness
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. net — after costs
  20. net — for catching
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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