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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. shower — rain
  7. capital — a city
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. cell — in biology
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. bound — certain
  16. bound — obliged
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. cell — a phone
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. bound — tied together
  22. capital — money
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. racket — for tennis

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