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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. mate — to breed
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. mate — a friend
  8. face — to confront
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. face — part of the head
  12. dip — to sink
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. fine — high quality
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. mate — a partner
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. tube — a container
  21. face — to point toward
  22. fine — all right
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. tube — the underground

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