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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: mine · patient · rush · march · chair · roll · bay · saw

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. rush — hurry
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. roll — a list
  11. saw — the tool
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. march — the month
  14. chair — a leader
  15. march — the month
  16. march — music
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. saw — the tool
  19. roll — a cake
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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