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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. track — a song
  3. saw — the tool
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. cell — a phone
  6. bound — obliged
  7. spell — a short time
  8. bound — certain
  9. track — a path
  10. saw — the tool
  11. file — a document
  12. spell — letters
  13. spell — magic
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. cell — in biology
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a tool
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. squash — the sport
  20. bound — tied together
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. track — to keep track
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. squash — to crush

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