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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. bank — for money
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. ground — crushed
  9. cold — an illness
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. ground — a position
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. stock — shares
  17. row — a line
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. bank — for money
  20. stock — goods
  21. ground — the earth
  22. cold — not warm
  23. row — to paddle
  24. bank — of a river

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