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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. staff — employees
  3. club — for golf
  4. last — final
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. drill — the tool
  7. staff — employees
  8. bulb — for light
  9. season — in sport
  10. staff — a stick
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. season — of the year
  13. drill — army training
  14. bulb — for light
  15. wind — moving air
  16. club — a group
  17. last — finally
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. last — to go on
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. club — for dancing
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. drill — a practice
  24. wind — moving air

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