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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 116 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. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. mug — a face
  3. mug — a cup
  4. mug — to rob
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. mark — a grade
  7. mark — a trace
  8. kid — to tease
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. face — to confront
  16. face — to point toward
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. mine — for digging
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. kid — child
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. face — part of the head

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