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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: rash · patient · kid · face · fall · stick · wound · scale

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. kid — child
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. fall — to drop
  5. scale — in music
  6. kid — to tease
  7. wound — an injury
  8. face — to confront
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. fall — to drop
  17. rash — a series
  18. rash — hasty
  19. wound — an injury
  20. face — to point toward
  21. fall — the season
  22. scale — size or range
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. scale — for weighing

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