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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. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. firm — decided
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. firm — a company
  8. staff — employees
  9. capital — a city
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. craft — a skill
  13. rash — hasty
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. plane — a tool
  16. craft — boats
  17. firm — steady
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. staff — a stick
  20. capital — money
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. rash — a series
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. staff — employees

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