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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. land — a country
  4. row — a line
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. rash — hasty
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. tube — the underground
  9. row — to paddle
  10. court — for sport
  11. land — to come down
  12. land — ground
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. tube — a container
  19. rash — a series
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. court — of law
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. court — of a king
  24. rash — on the skin

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