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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 120 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 need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. bound — tied together
  4. club — for dancing
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. drill — a practice
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. club — a group
  10. bound — obliged
  11. stand — to bear
  12. hand — help
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bound — certain
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. club — for golf
  17. drill — army training
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. hand — in cards
  21. swing — music
  22. swing — to play on
  23. swing — in golf
  24. patient — a sick person

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