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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 120 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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. chest — of your body
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. last — finally
  6. pit — in a race
  7. last — final
  8. current — electric
  9. current — of water
  10. bat — the animal
  11. chest — of your body
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. pit — a hole
  16. fork — in a road
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. bank — for money
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. bank — of a river
  21. chest — a box
  22. bank — for money
  23. current — happening now
  24. bat — in an idiom

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