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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: firm · rash · fall · straw · rest · cold · patient · fork

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. cold — an illness
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. firm — steady
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. rest — what's left
  13. cold — not warm
  14. fall — the season
  15. rest — a break
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rash — a series
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. fall — to drop
  21. firm — a company
  22. firm — decided
  23. fork — in a road
  24. rash — hasty

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