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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. game — wild animals
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. spell — magic
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. shower — to wash
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. sharp — clever
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. spell — letters
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. spell — a short time
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. game — a match
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. shower — rain
  24. nail — on a finger

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