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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. rock — music
  6. spring — a coil
  7. bore — to tire
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. land — to come down
  11. land — ground
  12. spring — of water
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. deal — to handle
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. land — a country
  18. rock — a stone
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. spring — the season
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. cell — in biology
  23. bore — to drill
  24. plane — a tool

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