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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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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: rest · fall · kick · wind · patient · jam

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. rest — a break
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. fall — the season
  6. kick — in football
  7. fall — to drop
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. fall — to drop
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. rest — what's left
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. rest — what's left
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. wind — moving air

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