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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: plane · deal · snap · patient · fall · staff · cold · cell

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. deal — to handle
  5. cold — an illness
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. plane — a tool
  8. fall — the season
  9. fall — to drop
  10. fall — to drop
  11. snap — to click
  12. staff — employees
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. staff — employees
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. cell — in biology
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. cold — not warm
  24. staff — a stick

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