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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 116 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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. swing — to play on
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. swing — in golf
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. rash — hasty
  8. mate — a friend
  9. wake — a trail
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. mate — to breed
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. swing — music
  17. saw — the tool
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. rash — a series
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. mate — a partner
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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