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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 need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. row — a line
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. file — a document
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. pit — a hole
  9. drill — a practice
  10. row — to paddle
  11. pit — in a race
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. game — wild animals
  15. file — a line of people
  16. game — a match
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. drill — army training
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. file — a tool
  24. leaves — to go away

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