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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. squash — the sport
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. squash — to crush
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. fork — in a road
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. court — of law
  13. court — of a king
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. race — a contest
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. race — the arms race
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. court — for sport
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. race — humankind
  23. snap — to click
  24. squash — the vegetable

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