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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 120 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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. wind — moving air
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. clip — a video
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. hand — help
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. clip — to cut
  10. squash — to crush
  11. season — in sport
  12. clip — for paper
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. hand — in cards
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. season — of the year
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. deal — to handle
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. wind — moving air
  24. squash — the sport

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