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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. land — ground
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. present — the time now
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. row — to paddle
  13. net — in sport
  14. cold — not warm
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. land — to come down
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. cold — an illness
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. net — for catching
  21. row — a line
  22. net — after costs
  23. present — a gift
  24. land — a country

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