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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. fork — in a road
  3. mark — a trace
  4. cold — an illness
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. mark — a grade
  11. bark — to shout
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. mug — a cup
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. ground — the earth
  16. ground — a position
  17. mug — to rob
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. snap — to click
  21. cold — not warm
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. ground — crushed
  24. mark — to pay attention

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