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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. shower — rain
  5. last — to go on
  6. ground — the earth
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. rock — a stone
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. last — finally
  11. bat — the animal
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. shower — to wash
  14. ground — crushed
  15. ground — a position
  16. craft — boats
  17. ball — a great time
  18. ball — a dance
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. craft — a skill
  22. rock — music
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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