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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. fine — all right
  3. clip — for paper
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. rash — a series
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. spring — a coil
  9. fine — high quality
  10. snap — to click
  11. spring — the season
  12. spell — magic
  13. rash — hasty
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. clip — a video
  16. spring — of water
  17. spell — a short time
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. clip — to cut
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. spell — letters

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