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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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. shower — to wash
  4. season — of the year
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. net — for catching
  7. shower — rain
  8. net — after costs
  9. degree — an amount
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. degree — from a university
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — the tool
  14. season — in sport
  15. degree — temperature
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. bore — to drill
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. rash — hasty
  21. net — in sport
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. bore — to tire

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