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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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. march — music
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. march — the month
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. kid — child
  14. capital — a city
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. march — the month
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. capital — money
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. prune — to trim
  23. kid — to tease
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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