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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: last · game · patient · fork · snap · club

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. game — wild animals
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. club — a group
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. game — a match
  7. club — for dancing
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. club — for golf
  10. fork — in a road
  11. last — final
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. last — to go on
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. snap — to click
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. patient — a sick person

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