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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. bear — the animal
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. tube — a container
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. bat — the animal
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. tube — the underground
  15. rush — hurry
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. row — a line
  18. bear — the animal
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. pitch — completely
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. row — to paddle

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