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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 people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. rock — music
  6. squash — to crush
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. game — wild animals
  9. chair — a leader
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. file — a document
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. squash — the sport
  15. file — a tool
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. game — a match
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. file — a line of people
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. rock — a stone

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