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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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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 · mouse · chest · fork · toast · patient · pit · file

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. toast — bread
  3. file — a document
  4. chest — of your body
  5. file — a tool
  6. pit — a hole
  7. fork — in a road
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. pit — in a race
  10. land — a country
  11. land — ground
  12. land — to come down
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chest — a box
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. file — a line of people
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. mouse — the animal

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