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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 ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. tube — the underground
  4. saw — the tool
  5. cold — not warm
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. bank — for money
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. cold — an illness
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. wound — an injury
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. bank — of a river
  19. wound — an injury
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. tube — a container
  22. saw — the tool
  23. bank — for money
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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