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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. swing — to play on
  7. wind — moving air
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. rash — a series
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. swing — in golf
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bat — the animal
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. swing — music

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