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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. staff — employees
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. bound — tied together
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. season — in sport
  11. march — music
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. capital — money
  14. staff — a stick
  15. bound — obliged
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. season — of the year
  19. bound — certain
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. march — the month
  23. march — the month
  24. capital — a city

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