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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 · mouse · hand · row · content · rule · patient · saw

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. hand — help
  4. rule — a law
  5. hand — in cards
  6. content — happy
  7. saw — the tool
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. rest — a break
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. row — a line
  14. row — to paddle
  15. saw — the tool
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. content — the amount
  19. rule — government
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. rest — what's left
  23. rest — what's left
  24. content — videos and posts

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