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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. suit — to fit
  7. suit — in cards
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — of your body
  11. drill — the tool
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. chest — a box
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. present — a gift
  17. drill — a practice
  18. suit — clothes
  19. present — the time now
  20. band — a music group
  21. band — a ring
  22. pound — a weight
  23. fork — in a road
  24. drill — army training

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