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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. tear — to rip
  5. bass — low music
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. shower — rain
  9. mark — a grade
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. tear — from crying
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. tear — from crying
  18. shower — to wash
  19. row — a line
  20. row — to paddle
  21. mark — a trace
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. plane — a tool
  24. ruler — for measuring

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