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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. season — in sport
  4. file — a tool
  5. bore — to tire
  6. bore — to drill
  7. hand — in cards
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. rule — a law
  12. mine — for digging
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. hand — help
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. season — of the year
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. file — a line of people
  21. file — a document
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. rule — government
  24. rule — to rule out

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