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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. row — a line
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. bear — the animal
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. bear — the animal
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. plane — a tool
  13. cold — not warm
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. row — to paddle
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. cold — an illness
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. patient — a sick person

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