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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. mug — a cup
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. race — humankind
  5. wound — an injury
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. wound — an injury
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. hand — help
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. race — the arms race
  14. ground — a position
  15. hand — in cards
  16. race — a contest
  17. ground — crushed
  18. mug — to rob
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. ground — the earth
  21. chair — a leader
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. mug — a face
  24. cabinet — ministers

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