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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: staff · patient · row · degree · fine · mug · straw · pitcher

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. staff — employees
  3. row — to paddle
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. degree — an amount
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. mug — a face
  10. mug — a cup
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. row — a line
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. degree — temperature
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. staff — employees
  18. fine — high quality
  19. staff — a stick
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. degree — from a university
  22. mug — to rob
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. patient — a sick person

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