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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. bore — to tire
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. chair — a leader
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. date — the fruit
  19. bore — to drill
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. pitcher — a jug

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