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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  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. patient — calm and waiting
  2. staff — employees
  3. mate — to breed
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. mate — a partner
  6. vault — a safe
  7. mate — a friend
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. hand — in cards
  11. rash — a series
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. rash — hasty
  14. club — for golf
  15. hand — help
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. staff — a stick
  19. club — for dancing
  20. club — a group
  21. staff — employees
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  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