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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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. season — in sport
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. degree — from a university
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. scale — in music
  10. degree — temperature
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. degree — an amount
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. hand — help
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. scale — size or range
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. fine — high quality
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. fine — all right
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. season — of the year

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