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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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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. game — wild animals
  7. saw — the tool
  8. face — to confront
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. present — a gift
  12. saw — the tool
  13. swing — to play on
  14. present — the time now
  15. swing — music
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. scale — size or range
  18. game — a match
  19. face — part of the head
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. scale — in music
  22. face — to point toward
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. swing — in golf

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