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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 120 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: land · fork · cabinet · fine · leaves · wind · patient · straw

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. land — to come down
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. fine — high quality
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. wind — moving air
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. fork — in a road
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. land — ground
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. wind — moving air
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. land — a country
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. fine — all right

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