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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — moving air
  4. game — wild animals
  5. stand — to bear
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. race — the arms race
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. tube — a container
  12. bat — the animal
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. race — a contest
  15. tube — the underground
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. race — humankind
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. game — a match
  24. plane — a tool

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