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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. bass — the fish
  3. bass — low music
  4. firm — steady
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. firm — a company
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. fork — in a road
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. firm — decided
  17. cold — an illness
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. content — the amount
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. content — happy
  24. cold — not warm

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