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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: drill · foot · mine · patient · lean · perch · rush · cold

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. drill — the tool
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. perch — the fish
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. drill — army training
  9. cold — an illness
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. lean — to bend
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. lean — thin
  14. drill — a practice
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. rush — hurry
  17. mine — for digging
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. foot — a measure
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. perch — for a bird

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