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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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. chest — a box
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. spring — the season
  5. chest — of your body
  6. fall — to drop
  7. rock — a stone
  8. mate — a friend
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. spring — of water
  13. chest — of your body
  14. snap — to click
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. mate — to breed
  17. rock — music
  18. mate — a partner
  19. chair — a leader
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. fall — to drop
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. fall — the season
  24. spring — a coil

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