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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 people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. mate — a partner
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. mate — a friend
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. hand — in cards
  12. race — a contest
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. race — the arms race
  18. hand — help
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. kick — in football
  21. mate — to breed
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. race — humankind
  24. kick — a thrill

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