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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. court — of law
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. court — for sport
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. march — music
  7. chip — for betting
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. court — of a king
  12. chip — to eat
  13. hand — in cards
  14. pitch — completely
  15. cold — not warm
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. cold — an illness
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. hand — help
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. march — the month
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. march — the month

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