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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 ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. land — ground
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. snap — to click
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. fall — to drop
  9. land — a country
  10. fine — all right
  11. race — the arms race
  12. fall — to drop
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. fall — the season
  17. land — to come down
  18. race — humankind
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. bat — the animal
  21. fine — high quality
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. race — a contest

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