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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. mark — a trace
  4. bear — the animal
  5. tear — to rip
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. last — finally
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. net — after costs
  11. tear — from crying
  12. row — a line
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. mark — a grade
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. game — a match
  17. last — to go on
  18. last — final
  19. net — in sport
  20. bear — the animal
  21. row — to paddle
  22. tear — from crying
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. net — for catching

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