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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.

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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: file · cold · patient · kid · suit · nail · root · pit

  1. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  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. root — the cause
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. suit — in cards
  6. pit — in a race
  7. file — a tool
  8. pit — a hole
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. cold — not warm
  11. kid — to tease
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. suit — to fit
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. kid — child
  17. root — of a plant
  18. file — a document
  19. root — of a word
  20. cold — an illness
  21. file — a line of people
  22. suit — clothes
  23. cold — the Cold War
  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