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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: lie · bat · patient · rest · row · swing · saw · trunk

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. swing — to play on
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. saw — the tool
  5. row — to paddle
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. rest — a break
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. lie — to recline
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. swing — in golf
  12. bat — the animal
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rest — what's left
  15. swing — music
  16. row — a line
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. saw — the tool
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. bat — for baseball

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