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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. ball — a dance
  5. chest — of your body
  6. spell — letters
  7. ball — a great time
  8. chest — a box
  9. chest — of your body
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. land — a country
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. spell — a short time
  14. pit — in a race
  15. pit — a hole
  16. charge — electricity
  17. land — ground
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. charge — in control
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. fork — in a road
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. spell — magic
  24. charge — a price

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