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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.

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: cue · land · saw · dip · row · fork · patient · game

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. cue — a hint
  3. game — wild animals
  4. cue — a signal
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. land — a country
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. row — a line
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. land — to come down
  11. fork — in a road
  12. dip — to sink
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. land — ground
  15. cue — for pool
  16. saw — the tool
  17. game — a match
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. row — to paddle

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