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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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. tear — from crying
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. tear — to rip
  5. row — to paddle
  6. suit — clothes
  7. tear — from crying
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. suit — to fit
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. row — a line
  13. key — for a lock
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. key — in music
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. key — the most important part
  19. shower — rain
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. suit — in cards
  22. cold — not warm
  23. chair — a leader
  24. shower — to wash

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