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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 120 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. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. spell — letters
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. rest — what's left
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — a break
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. can — to be able to
  12. snap — to click
  13. field — for sport
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. spell — a short time
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. can — a tin
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. field — farmland
  21. pass — a permit
  22. field — a subject
  23. can — a tin
  24. spell — magic

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