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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 116 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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. lean — thin
  3. present — the time now
  4. lean — to bend
  5. present — there
  6. present — a gift
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. wind — moving air
  13. drill — the tool
  14. wind — moving air
  15. file — a document
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. cap — a lid
  18. drill — a practice
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. deal — to handle
  21. drill — army training
  22. file — a line of people
  23. cap — of ice
  24. cap — a hat

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