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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. squash — the sport
  3. file — a document
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. capital — money
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. fork — in a road
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. chip — to eat
  17. squash — to crush
  18. season — in sport
  19. file — a tool
  20. season — of the year
  21. file — a line of people
  22. chip — for betting
  23. capital — a city
  24. hide — to keep secret

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