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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 ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. mate — to breed
  4. deal — to handle
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. mate — a friend
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. mine — for digging
  11. mate — a partner
  12. band — a ring
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. court — for sport
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. band — a music group
  21. fork — in a road
  22. court — of law
  23. court — of a king
  24. fork — a garden tool

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