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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: rush · dip · cell · patient · craft · fan · pitcher · hide

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  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. pitcher — in baseball
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. rush — hurry
  4. cell — in biology
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. dip — to sink
  10. craft — a skill
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. cell — a phone
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. craft — boats
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  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