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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 teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. roll — a list
  3. chest — of your body
  4. season — of the year
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. land — ground
  7. season — in sport
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. file — a line of people
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. rush — hurry
  13. chest — of your body
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. file — a document
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. land — a country
  20. file — a tool
  21. chest — a box
  22. land — to come down
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. roll — a cake

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