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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. wound — an injury
  4. drill — army training
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. race — humankind
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. race — a contest
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. drill — the tool
  12. drill — a practice
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. cell — a phone
  15. race — the arms race
  16. mark — a trace
  17. mark — a grade
  18. shower — to wash
  19. shower — rain
  20. cell — in biology
  21. fine — high quality
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. wound — an injury

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