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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. present — there
  5. bore — to tire
  6. present — the time now
  7. shower — to wash
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. rush — hurry
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. rule — government
  15. chest — a box
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. shower — rain
  18. tube — the underground
  19. tube — a container
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. bore — to drill
  23. chest — of your body
  24. rule — a law

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