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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. cap — a hat
  4. game — a match
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. net — for catching
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. rush — hurry
  11. ball — a dance
  12. perch — the fish
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. cap — a lid
  15. net — after costs
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. hand — help
  19. cap — of ice
  20. ball — a great time
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. hand — in cards
  23. net — in sport
  24. perch — for a bird

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