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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. cell — a phone
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. rush — hurry
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. tear — from crying
  13. key — in music
  14. cell — in biology
  15. net — for catching
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. key — the most important part
  18. key — for a lock
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. net — after costs
  23. tear — to rip
  24. fork — in a road

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