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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: fan · mine · pitcher · patient · bark · dip · chip · saw

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. mine — for digging
  7. dip — to sink
  8. saw — the tool
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. saw — the tool
  11. chip — for betting
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. bark — to shout
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. chip — to eat
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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