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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 office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. ball — a great time
  3. bound — obliged
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. net — in sport
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. bound — certain
  11. staff — employees
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. staff — a stick
  14. ball — a dance
  15. net — for catching
  16. bound — tied together
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. net — after costs
  19. press — to push
  20. press — a publisher
  21. press — newspapers
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. sharp — clever

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