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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. When was this ________________ built?
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. cap — a hat
  4. cap — a lid
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. cap — of ice
  9. file — a line of people
  10. tube — the underground
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. file — a tool
  15. tube — a container
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. file — a document
  19. ball — a dance
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. ball — a great time
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. straw — dry grass

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