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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. fall — to drop
  5. sharp — clever
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. chip — to eat
  8. mine — for digging
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. ball — a great time
  15. fall — to drop
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. fall — the season
  18. hand — help
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. hand — in cards
  22. chip — for betting
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. ball — a dance

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