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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: land · game · mug · present · drill · last · patient · pitcher

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. game — a match
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. drill — a practice
  5. drill — the tool
  6. present — there
  7. mug — a face
  8. last — to go on
  9. mug — to rob
  10. last — finally
  11. last — final
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. present — the time now
  14. land — a country
  15. land — to come down
  16. game — wild animals
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. drill — army training
  20. mug — a cup
  21. present — a gift
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. land — ground
  24. patient — a sick person

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