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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. key — for a lock
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. cold — an illness
  6. key — the most important part
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. bank — for money
  9. wind — moving air
  10. bank — of a river
  11. key — in music
  12. root — of a word
  13. mate — a partner
  14. bank — for money
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. root — the cause
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. sharp — clever
  19. mate — a friend
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. mate — to breed
  22. wind — moving air
  23. root — of a plant
  24. patient — a sick person

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