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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 116 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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. bound — certain
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. game — wild animals
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. kick — in football
  12. ground — the earth
  13. prune — to trim
  14. ground — a position
  15. bound — tied together
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. game — a match
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. prune — to trim
  20. ground — crushed
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. bound — obliged
  24. leaves — of a tree

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