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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. wind — moving air
  4. land — a country
  5. swing — music
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. land — ground
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. firm — steady
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. land — to come down
  14. swing — to play on
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. wind — moving air
  17. firm — decided
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. shower — to wash
  20. shower — rain
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. swing — in golf

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