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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 124 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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. hand — in cards
  3. pit — a hole
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. hand — help
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. rush — hurry
  14. cold — not warm
  15. pit — in a race
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. cold — an illness
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. mine — for digging

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