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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: net · wake · patient · fall · firm · lie · hand · mug

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. hand — help
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — to drop
  5. mug — a cup
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. net — in sport
  8. firm — a company
  9. net — for catching
  10. firm — steady
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. hand — in cards
  15. lie — to recline
  16. mug — to rob
  17. mug — a face
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. fall — the season
  21. wake — a trail
  22. net — after costs
  23. firm — decided
  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