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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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. prune — to trim
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bat — the animal
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. chip — to eat
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. wind — moving air
  19. branch — a division
  20. prune — to trim
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. chip — for betting
  24. lie — to recline

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