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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. deal — to handle
  5. mine — for digging
  6. chair — a leader
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. rash — a series
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. pit — a hole
  17. rush — hurry
  18. rash — hasty
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. pit — in a race
  24. chair — a professorship

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