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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. club — for golf
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. bore — to drill
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. club — for dancing
  14. wound — an injury
  15. bore — to tire
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. club — a group
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. wound — an injury
  20. bass — low music
  21. chair — a leader
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. fork — in a road
  24. bass — the fish

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