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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. cold — an illness
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. capital — money
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. march — the month
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. rush — hurry
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. capital — a city
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. wound — an injury
  15. march — the month
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. deal — to handle
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. wound — an injury
  20. march — music
  21. board — to get on
  22. cold — not warm
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. board — a committee

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