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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 120 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. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. mug — to rob
  3. prune — to trim
  4. prune — to trim
  5. clip — for paper
  6. mug — a cup
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. dip — to sink
  9. clip — to cut
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. rush — hurry
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. wake — a trail
  23. mug — a face
  24. clip — a video

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