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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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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 water is too ________________.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. fall — the season
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. cold — an illness
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. club — for golf
  15. pass — a permit
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. club — a group
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. fall — to drop
  21. pitch — completely
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. club — for dancing
  24. fall — to drop

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