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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. object — an aim
  3. rash — hasty
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. cell — in biology
  6. bass — low music
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. cap — a hat
  11. mine — for digging
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. cell — a phone
  14. object — to protest
  15. object — a thing
  16. cap — of ice
  17. cap — a lid
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. scale — size or range
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. bass — the fish
  23. rash — a series
  24. scale — in music

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