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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 120 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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. ground — the earth
  4. ground — a position
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. club — for golf
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. pitch — completely
  12. kid — to tease
  13. sharp — clever
  14. club — a group
  15. club — for dancing
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. kid — child
  20. ground — crushed
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. coach — a trainer

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