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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. key — the most important part
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. bat — the animal
  5. key — in music
  6. wind — moving air
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. wind — moving air
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. key — for a lock
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. mine — for digging
  19. shower — to wash
  20. shower — rain
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. coach — a trainer

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