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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 124 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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. net — in sport
  5. wound — an injury
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. bound — obliged
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. bound — certain
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. bulb — for light
  13. wound — an injury
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. chair — a leader
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. bound — tied together
  18. row — to paddle
  19. bulb — for light
  20. net — for catching
  21. net — after costs
  22. row — a line
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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