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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. bound — tied together
  3. tear — from crying
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. bound — certain
  6. press — a publisher
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. mug — to rob
  10. mate — to breed
  11. press — to push
  12. mug — a cup
  13. bound — obliged
  14. mine — for digging
  15. press — newspapers
  16. tear — from crying
  17. mug — a face
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. tear — to rip
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. mate — a partner
  24. mate — a friend

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