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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: drill · mine · plane · game · patient · jam · rush · bat

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. rush — hurry
  4. drill — a practice
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. game — wild animals
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. plane — a tool
  14. game — a match
  15. drill — army training
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. drill — the tool
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bat — the animal
  21. mine — for digging
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. rush — to hurry

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