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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 ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. game — wild animals
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. spell — magic
  5. spell — a short time
  6. court — for sport
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. court — of law
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. spell — letters
  13. court — of a king
  14. vault — a safe
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cold — not warm
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. game — a match
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. stand — to bear
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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