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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: patient · straw · cabinet · march · ball · rash · lean · saw

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. saw — the tool
  4. ball — a dance
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. march — music
  8. march — the month
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. rash — a series
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. lean — to bend
  14. march — the month
  15. ball — a great time
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. rash — hasty
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. saw — the tool
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. cabinet — ministers

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