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

Word bank: scale · dip · pit · patient · cold · cell

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. dip — to sink
  8. scale — in music
  9. scale — size or range
  10. cell — in biology
  11. cold — not warm
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. pit — in a race
  14. cold — an illness
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. cell — a phone
  18. scale — for weighing

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