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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. bound — tied together
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. ground — the earth
  6. cold — not warm
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. court — of a king
  11. bore — to tire
  12. sharp — clever
  13. bound — certain
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. bound — obliged
  16. bore — to drill
  17. cold — an illness
  18. ground — a position
  19. ground — crushed
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. court — for sport
  23. court — of law
  24. patient — a sick person

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