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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 116 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.

Make a worksheet

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: mine · saw · patient · shower · wake · kick · net · lash

  1. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. net — in sport
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. net — for catching
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. wake — a trail
  8. saw — the tool
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. kick — in football
  13. net — after costs
  14. shower — rain
  15. mine — for digging
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. shower — to wash
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. saw — the tool

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