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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 124 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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. can — a tin
  4. hand — help
  5. fall — to drop
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. fall — the season
  9. can — a tin
  10. spring — of water
  11. fine — all right
  12. spring — a coil
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. game — a match
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. game — wild animals
  17. fine — high quality
  18. fall — to drop
  19. stem — to come from
  20. spring — the season
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. can — to be able to

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