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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. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. rest — what's left
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. plane — a tool
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. row — a line
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. drill — a practice
  10. drill — the tool
  11. cold — not warm
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rest — a break
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. drill — army training
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. row — to paddle
  23. cold — an illness
  24. row — a quarrel

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