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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: mark · hand · cold · cue · bulb · patient · pitcher · bore

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. mark — a grade
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bore — to drill
  5. hand — help
  6. mark — a trace
  7. cue — for pool
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. bore — to tire
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. hand — in cards
  20. cue — a signal
  21. bulb — for light
  22. cold — an illness
  23. cue — a hint
  24. bore — gave birth

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